Shuttle Enterprise takes flight today to N.Y.C.
Shuttle Enterprise is set to take flight today from the Washington D.C. metro area to its new home at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York City.
Enterprise on Apr. 19, 2012, its last formal day at Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
was loaded last Friday on top of a modified Boeing 747 jetliner last week in anticipation of a Monday flight,
which was delayed due to inclement weather.
At the time, the scheduled takeoff and flyover New York City was delayed "until further notice."
NASA announced Apr. 27 as the new date.
Enterprise will take flight sometime this morning between 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Unfortunately, D.C. locals won't get the opportunity to see Enterprise circle the region
as they did with Space Shuttle
Discovery last week. The flight has been described as being straightforward.
The specific route for
Enterprise's flight has not been set, but those in New York City will be given the same type of flyover with
Enterprise that Washington saw with
Discovery. According to
Space.com, shuttle
Enterprise is expected to fly over the Hudson River, past the Statue of Liberty and the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. NASA noted the aircraft will fly over "notable landmarks," and "fly at a relatively low altitude over various parts of the New York City metropolitan area."
If
Enterprise's flight today is anything like
Discovery's flight last week, locals in the New York City metro are in for a treat.
Discovery made two flyovers in downtown Washington, while those out by Dulles Airport saw three flyovers as the shuttle was taken to points west out near Warrenton, Va.
After the flyover,
Enterprise will land at the John F. Kennedy Airport, where it will eventually make its way to the Intrepid Museum, being taken up the Hudson River by barge. It is anticipated
Enterprise will be open to the public in July.
Discovery was placed in the hangar where the prototype
Enterprise had once resided at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum at
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.
Enterprise and Discovery come nose-to-nose, a historical event
Enterprise, the first Space Shuttle Orbiter, had been the centerpiece of the McDonnell Space Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a part of the National Air and Space Museum. In 2012 the shuttle was moved to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.
