Shuttle Endeavour Attached to Boeing 747 SCA

Space shuttle Endeavour has been attached to the modified 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The operation began at 5:04 a.m. EDT Friday, Sept. 14, when Endeavour was towed from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the Shuttle Landing Facility Mate-Demate Device (MDD). Endeavour was precisely positioned in the MDD at 7:22 a.m. It was hoisted into the air, its landing gear was retracted, and the SCA taxied underneath it. Technicians lowered the shuttle onto three struts protruding from the top of the 747 and fastened it in place at 2:41 p.m.