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Dryden Home > Collections > Movies Home > 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) |
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747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA)
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NASA used two modified Boeing 747 jetliners, originally manufactured for commercial use, as Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA). One was a 747-100 model, while the other was designated a 747-100SR (short range). The two aircraft were identical in appearance and in their performance as Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.
The SCAs were used to ferry space shuttle orbiters from landing sites back to the launch complex at the Kennedy Space Center, and also to and from other locations too distant for the orbiters to be delivered by ground transportation. The orbiters were placed atop the SCAs by Mate-Demate Devices, large gantry-like structures which hoist the orbiters off the ground for post-flight servicing, and then mate them with the SCAs for ferry flights.
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