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Super Guppy Swallows NASA Aircraft Whole
The Super Guppy has never been to space, but it has a long history of helping NASA get there. The odd-body, oversize aircraft has helped transport components of the Gemini, Apollo, and Skylab missions, and more recently played a key role in the construction of the International Space Station. (news.cnet.com) Más...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
What is really noticable is the guppy's takeoff and basically just the straight up takeoff, all 3 up at the same time, no real rotation. Is that normal or is pilot just showing off? lol
...would it not cost less to fly the two jets to their final destination??
They are no longer airworthy. It seems that trucking them would have worked and been cheaper.
I've watched there departures a number of times, and this appears to be the normal lift-off.
NASA Dryden website story -
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/Features/super_guppy.html
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/Features/super_guppy.html
Why spend massive amounts of money to move two aircraft a few hundred miles by the SuperGuppy? Why not fly the T-38's? Too, here's a question: Why fly the planes to ELP to be dismantled, only to return the parts to Ellington where the T-38's are based? Is it just me, or is his a headscratcher? Why not simply dismantle the T-38's at Ellington and use the parts right there rather than move the planes, dismantle them, then ship them piece-by-piece back to where they came from?
The T-38s are no longer air-worthy, hence the need for the Super Guppy to transport them. They were flown from Dryden in Southern California to El Paso to be dismantled, after the usuable parts have been removed the airframes and other remaining parts will be trucked to Davis-Monthan near Tucson for final dispostion by the Air Force's Aerospace Maintenance and Recovery Center. The usuable parts will be used for still-operating El Paso based NASA T-38s. The only Ellington field connection here is the fact that the Super Guppy is based there.
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/Features/super_guppy.html
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/Features/super_guppy.html