Space shuttle enterprise vafb series#

On January 31, 1977, Enterprise was taken by road to Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base to begin operational testing. Approach and landing tests (ALT) įred Haise and Gordon Fullerton (wearing oxygen mask) in Enterprise 's cockpit, 1977

Space shuttle enterprise vafb series#

In recognition of its fictional namesake, Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and most of the principal cast of the original series of Star Trek were on hand at the dedication ceremony. On September 17, 1976, Enterprise was rolled out of Rockwell's plant at Palmdale, California. In mid-1976 the orbiter was used for ground vibration tests, allowing engineers to compare data from an actual flight vehicle with theoretical models. Although Ford did not publicly mention the campaign, the president said that he was 'partial to the name' Enterprise, and directed NASA officials to change the name. White House advisors cited 'hundreds of thousands of letters' from Trekkies, 'one of the most dedicated constituencies in the country', as a reason for giving the shuttle the name. Fans of Star Trek asked US President Gerald Ford, through a letter-writing campaign, to name the orbiter after the television show's fictional starship, USS Enterprise. Designated OV-101, it was originally planned to be named Constitution and unveiled on Constitution Day, September 17, 1976. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry (third from right, in dark brown), the Star Trek cast (with the exception of William Shatner) and NASA administrators attending Enterprise 's rollout ceremonyĬonstruction began on Enterprise on June 4, 1974. Start systems retest, complete integrated systems checkout Vertical stabilizer arrives at Palmdale from Fairchild RepublicĬomplete final assembly and closeout systems installationĬomplete functional checkout, start ground vibration and proof load tests Mid fuselage arrives at Palmdale from General Dynamics Start structural assembly of aft fuselage at Downey plant Start structural assembly of crew module at Downey plant Construction milestones DateĬontract Award to North American Rockwell As it was only used for atmospheric testing, Enterprise featured a large nose probe mounted on its nose cap, common on test aircraft because the location provides the most accurate readings for the test instruments, being mounted out in front of the disturbed airflow.Įnterprise was equipped with Lockheed-manufactured zero-zero ejection seats like those its sister Columbia carried on its first four missions. Įnterprise also lacked reaction control system thrusters and hydraulic mechanisms for the landing gear the landing gear doors were simply opened through the use of explosive bolts and the gear dropped down solely by gravity. Enterprise used fuel cells to generate its electrical power, but these were not sufficient to power the orbiter for spaceflight.

Only a few sample thermal tiles and some Nomex blankets were real. Fiberglass was used for the leading edge panels in place of the reinforced carbon–carbon ones of spaceflight-worthy orbiters. Instead of a thermal protection system, its surface was primarily covered with simulated tiles made from polyurethane foam. A large number of subsystems-ranging from main engines to radar equipment-were not installed on Enterprise, but the capacity to add them in the future was retained, as NASA originally intended to refit the orbiter for spaceflight at the conclusion of its testing. The design of Enterprise was not the same as that planned for Columbia, the first flight model the aft fuselage was constructed differently, and it did not have the interfaces to mount OMS pods. Differences between Enterprise and future shuttles

Following the retirement of the Space Shuttle fleet, Discovery replaced Enterprise at the Udvar-Hazy Center, and Enterprise was transferred to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City, where it has been on display since July 2012.

Įnterprise was restored and placed on display in 2003 at the Smithsonian's new Steven F. Similarly, Enterprise was considered for refit to replace Challenger after the latter was destroyed, but Endeavour was built from structural spares instead. However, during the construction of Space Shuttle Columbia, details of the final design changed, making it simpler and less costly to build Challenger around a body frame that had been built as a test article. Originally, Enterprise had been intended to be refitted for orbital flight to become the second space-rated orbiter in service. As a result, it was not capable of spaceflight. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield. Rolled out on September 17, 1976, it was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform atmospheric test flights after being launched from a modified Boeing 747. Space Shuttle Enterprise ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-101) was the first orbiter of the Space Shuttle system.