It's A "Go" For Endeavour's Launch On April 29
Cape Canaveral FL (SPX) Apr 20, 2011 NASA managers announced that space shuttle Endeavour is ready to launch next week on its final flight to the International Space Station following a daylong Flight Readiness Review on Tuesday. Endeavour is scheduled to launch Friday, April 29, at 3:47 p.m. EDT. "We have had a very extensive and thorough review," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for Space Operations. "I think the things that impressed me the most is that the team is still continuing to really work issues and look at the vehicle performance on each and every flight just like they would during any normal mission." "We're ready to go fly," Gerstenmaier said. All analysis and inspections of External Fuel Tank-122 confirmed its integrity after repairs were made because of damage sustained during Hurricane Katrina, according to Gerstenmaier. "It was a really good review from both the station and shuttle prospective," said Mike Moses, chairman of the Mission Management Team. "Endeavour and the team are in great shape." Endeavour is poised on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The countdown is to begin Tuesday at 2 p.m. "The final processing flow for Endeavour is going extremely well out at the pad," said Mike Leinbach, shuttle launch director. "I'm very proud of the team and we'll going to have a good launch and a good mission." The STS-134 crew is scheduled to arrive at Kennedy on Tuesday, April 26, for final launch preparations. The crew members for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission are Commander Mark Kelly, Pilot Gregory H. Johnson and Mission Specialists Michael Fincke, Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori. During the 14-day mission, Endeavour will deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for Dextre.
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NASA confirms April 29 launch for Endeavour shuttle Washington (AFP) April 19, 2011 The US space agency on Tuesday confirmed plans to launch the shuttle Endeavour on its final mission to the International Space Station on April 29. NASA's confirmation came following a flight readiness review meeting at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The 14-day mission, known as STS-134, will include the last spacewalks by a US shuttle crew at the orbiting lab, and will mark the second ... read more |
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