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Discovery's Final Flight; Discovery Arrives in D.C.
Aired April 17, 2012 - 10:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: OK, let me reset things a little bit because we have hit 10:00 Eastern Time. Actually, it's 10:01 now. What you're looking is you are looking at space shuttle "Discovery" on the back of a Boeing 747.
It took off from Florida earlier just about two hours ago I would say and eventually it's going to land at Dulles International Airport. And then -- this is the takeoff right here. See how beautiful that is. How crazy that looks. That looks awesome.
Anyway, it's going to land at Dulles International Airport around 10:15 EASTERN TIME and from there taken in to the Smithsonian and you can go in and look according to Lizzie O'Leary, our correspondent on the scene, Friday.
If you're visiting Washington, be sure check it out. John Zarrella, I'm just curious, how did they get the shuttle on the back of the 747?
ZARRELLA: They have a contraption out here at the Kennedy Space Center, literally, and it looks like a giant crane and they move the shuttle underneath it. They lift it up, they absolutely lift it up and then they bring the 747 underneath it and they lower the shuttle on top of the 747 and then they secure those struts on top there of the -- between the 747 and the bottom of the space shuttle.
And then they put that cone on the back of the space shuttle. You'll see it when it comes in where the engines would normally be. There's a cone. It kind of looks like the back of a duck, you know, a duck's feathers when you see a duck.
And that's so that it's more aerodynamic, you know, as it is flying on the back of the 747. I hate to equate the shuttle to a duck, but it kind does, you know, looks like that in the back as it's flying on that 747. That will be removed.
They'll take that off and then they'll put those tail cones back on. The shuttle's nozzles, the engine nozzles back on. Remember, there are no engines in there. They have been removed. The shuttle's three main engines, you know, that power it into orbit.
They are out. They will not be put back because they're going to be reused again. You know, NASA believes on some of its future spacecrafts. So they've taken the engines out. They've taken a lot of, you know, the sensitive things out of the cockpit.
Things that are proprietary so there's instrumentation that's been removed and, you know, one thing people may find, Carol, they're not going to be allowed to go inside the space shuttles when they're in these exhibits.
You can walk up close to them, see in. Pending how they're exhibited, but you will not be allowed to go in there and touch them because that would over the course of time degrade them and really, really ruined them.
They don't want -- these are as I was told and everyone can imagine. These are national treasures.
COSTELLO: I think you are right about that. OK, so let's go to Dulles International Airport in Virginia near Washington, D.C. That's where Lizzie O'Leary is and bring people up to date with what's happened this morning, Lizzie.
LIZZIE O'LEARY, CNN AVIATION AND REGULATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we had this morning, Carol, was sort of the first of the flyovers. You had people out here at what will be "Discovery's" home.
It came in and did a low flyover, just a few hundred feet above where we are and not far from the runway where it will land after it has done its tour of the National Monument. So it's being a tourist right now.
It will come back here and basically follow the same flight path from the south and land here at Dulles, which then you heard John describe the process of how they get it on to the 747. It's essentially the same thing in reverse using that crane-like contraption to get the shuttle off.
It takes about two days and then they will be able to take it in to the part of the Smithsonian that's out here near Dulles. But pretty soon people will start assembling for the arrival of the shuttle.
We know it can't be quite so soon yet because they actually just had a plane come through the air space. They tend to get everything else out of the air space before the shuttle arrives. That was our clue last time. We watched the air space clear out and then we knew it was coming.
COSTELLO: OK, I think we are -- well, we are scheduled to land in 7 or 8 minutes. We'll see if they really does. But things have been happening earlier than we expected and we expect the thing to land shortly. Tell us the number of people who showed up to watch this historic event.
O'LEARY: Well, there are several hundred people here and one of the things that I actually think is the coolest is you do have people in position to watch the flyover, but then over near the runway where this plane is supposed to land, the plane carrying the shuttle, you probably have somewhere between 75 and 100 people just right near the edge of the runway. These are people plane spotters times a thousand. People like to do this at regular airports. This is the chance to actually see a 747 land with the shuttle on top of it. So you have a little crowd over there right at the base of the runway waiting for that.
COSTELLO: Yes. You don't see that every day, do you? Let's go back to Florida and check in with John Zarrella. I would suspect that for the folks watching that thing leave Florida. This is the end of an era for them, but not only that a new economy for them, as well.
ZARRELLA: Yes. There's no question about it. You talked to people here. We were talking yesterday with a long-time shuttle worker. Terry White's his name, very famous. He's got a white handlebar mustache. He worked processing shuttles literally for 30 years.
You know, he can't find work. This guy with all his credentials cannot find work here. If he wants to work in his field of expertise, he will have to leave Florida. Go to Washington State, California, wherever.
That is the same for so, so many people. You know, while we're talking and saluting all of this, the shuttle's retirement and this grand and glorious, you know, fly around here and then up in Dulles, it's important to note that there is a lot of angst over the fact that the plug was pulled on the shuttle program, politically things didn't work out the way they were.
And I have been told by many, many people very close to the program and certainly with a vested interest, you know, it was too soon to pull the plug. Although we knew we had to move on in space exploration.
But for, you know, what amounts to a couple of million dollars a year extra in the budgets, NASA's budget, they could have continued flying shuttle until something else was ready.
And as we know for the next at least four years the United States is going to be relying on the Russians to get its astronauts to the International Space Station at a cost of $60 million a seat.
Every ride, $60 million, so, you know, it's not -- it's a great celebration today, but lest we not forget that, you know, the United States now has no access on its own to get astronauts in to space.
And that's something a lot of people here are very, very upset and very -- and still very angry and bitter about -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Private companies, they're going to take some of the -- I mean, they'll fly people to the -- astronauts to the International Space Station. That's right, right?
ZARRELLA: Absolutely. And then Space X seems to be the leader right now in the driver's seat. Two weeks from now performing the biggest test to date for his company. They're going to -- from just a couple of miles from here launching the dragon space capsule on top of the falcon rocket.
They will attempt to rendezvous and then birth with the International Space Station. Never has been done before by a commercial company. Three, four, five nations in the world are the only ones that did it.
If this is successful, he will then start carrying cargo to the space station and within three to four years by 2016, he and other competitors, other companies hope to start carrying U.S. astronauts for a fraction of what the Russians are charging us to the International Space Station -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So what is NASA doing now?
ZARRELLA: Now that -- and in fact I was talking to some astronauts today who said, you know what? We need smoke and fire and what that means is, in 2014, NASA is hoping that it will fly its first test flight of the Orion spacecraft, which is the one they believe will take its astronauts to asteroids and on to Mars in the next 20 years.
In 2014 from right out here on top of an Atlas rocket, they're going to do the first test flight of this thing unmanned, fly it out 5,000 miles and then a high speed re-entry through the earth's atmosphere to simulate what it would be like coming back from a Mars trip.
And NASA knows they need to do this to get inspiration going again, to get peoples' juices flowing again because the longer you sit on the ground, without your own access to space, the more as astronauts have put it to me, the more the country is going to get comfortable with that idea. And that they do not want to see happen.
COSTELLO: Although it's difficult to -- they're now competing against private companies, right?
ZARRELLA: Well, they're not going to be competing for deep space exploration. This was the whole plan was turn over low earth orbit to private companies. Let them have contracts with us, NASA. We pay them to take our astronauts to the space station.
That way we can spend the money, the bulk of that very -- you know, $18 billion budget is all they have, which is really not a lot of money. You know? It's less than half of 1 percent of the federal budget.
They can then spend that money on what NASA does best. Exploration, like taking people to the moon when the astronauts went to the moon and now they can concentrate on taking humans, you know, out to an asteroid, on to Mars, doing the things that NASA does best.
Because they're not going to be saddled is a way to put it with worrying about ferrying people back and forth to the space station because they'll have commercial companies do it. Problem is there was no bridge between -- the Russians are the bridge now when shuttle is over as we know and when the first commercial companies and that's barring any setbacks.
If there are setbacks in the commercial -- with commercial companies and they can't make 2016, you know, it could be even further out that we are going to be relying on the Russians to get our astronauts to the space station.
COSTELLO: Yes. I mean, I just can't believe it. It was just a couple of years ago, we were talking about maybe going to Mars, but nobody's talking about that anymore.
Let's go back to Dulles INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT and Lizzie O'Leary because she's standing amongst a group of people, shuttle watchers and she's pulled one aside. Lizzie, introduce us.
O'LEARY: Yes. I'm standing with not just a shuttle watcher, but a professional shuttle watcher we call it that. Jennifer Levasseur who is really a part of this and a part of the museum here. Tell us what people will be able to see as soon as "Discovery" is in this building.
JENNIFER LEVASSEUR, MUSEUM SPECIALIST: Well, I think it's going to be not too dissimilar from what they see now. Space shuttle "Enterprise" has held the same location for a number of years now and so "Discovery" will take its place.
And "Discovery" is just a fantastic-looking well worn space shuttle. I think that's the major difference people are going to notice that this massive piece of machinery is really weather beaten.
It's been through 39 missions and so we're really looking forward to being able to tell the flight story side of the space shuttle program.
O'LEARY: Speaking of the flight story, you have a couple people on hand today who flew in "Discovery." Tell me about that.
LEVASSEUR: Yes. We actually have a few of our -- some of our astronaut friends here today. So we have two astronauts who actually flew on "Discovery" and another who flew on some of the other shuttle missions.
So we're really lucky to have them as members of our National Air and Space Society. So they're with us to enjoy this really momentous occasion.
O'LEARY: When you look outside, we've been taking a peek at the hundreds of people who have been out here for a long time. How early did they get here?
LEVASSEUR: I was here just before 5:00 I think it was -- no, 6:00 and they were already waiting outside. So it's had a little bit of a tailgating football game type of vibe to it. I saw some kids playing football. So this is really exciting for the local community.
O'LEARY: It both has that celebratory feel and also hearing from the folks down at Kennedy. This is the end of the space shuttle program. There are people here who are saying goodbye to what was 30 years of space flight that sort of symbolized a lot of things about America. What's that like?
LEVASSEUR: Yes. It is a little bittersweet especially for those people who worked on the program. I think those are the people we as curators talk to most often, are those who are in the work force, the astronauts, the other administrators and whatnot.
It's really -- it's a sad moment for them, but I think for us it's sort of a beginning of a new story and a really exciting story for us at the museum that we get to tell. We get to tell this really fascinating story of the most historic space shuttle and all of the missions that it did.
It's really a great opportunity for us and sort of a beginning and an end in a way. So we just -- we can't wait to get on with our mission as the museum and telling America the story of "Discovery."
O'LEARY: Jennifer Levasseur, thank you so much. Carol, we are essentially waiting probably 15 minutes?
LEVASSEUR: About that.
O'LEARY: Probably about 15 minutes for "Discovery" to come back around and taking its time checking out Washington, D.C. It's my hometown so I understand. I'm a little prejudicial, you know, towards D.C.
So it is doing that flight and then we'll have it come in here and it will come from the south, fly over again so the people who are having that sort of tailgate party in the front lot will be able to see it again and then land on the right runway over here.
COSTELLO: Yes. And enjoying more frosty cold beverages, I'm sure. I think its flying over the Washington Mall now. So you're right, it's going to be a couple of minutes yet.
Let's go back to Florida and John Zarrella because I had a question about who was flying that plane and I knew John Zarrella would get the answer and he has it -- John.
ZARRELLA: I think, you know what? First, I think they're taking pictures of there from the 747. They're probably taking their pictures of Washington, D.C. as they're flying over taking their time while everybody's taking pictures of them.
We have a commander on board and there are -- there's a weather pilot on board, of course, the weather's perfect and probably just enjoying the ride. There's another pilot on board. A commander, two pilots, they're specially trained crew.
You have an FAA representative and two flight engineers. I thought there were only four. What I was told earlier, but there are six people on this flight bringing "Discovery" in to Dulles.
And again, specially trained crew, weights and balances are critical. You know, you're flying this thing piggyback. It's not like anything else that anyone else has flown a shuttle on the back of a 747.
Not easy to do so these guys know what they're doing. They have done it before. You know, on the times when they have transported shuttles across country from California, you know, in the early days of the program they didn't land at kennedy Space Center. They made sure the bugs were out and landed on the fly lake bed in California.
And then they would stick the shuttle on a 747 and ferry it out here because they had wide open space there. They didn't have to worry about mishaps of running off a runway or anything like that like they would here.
Until they were comfortable with landing here that's what they did and with weather issues and they couldn't land here they went to California and always ferry the shuttles back and takes several days or a week to get it back.
If weather's a problem, they have to wait out the weather until they could head on to the next stop along the route. So, these guys know what they're doing flying this thing. And, you know, that's certainly a good thing that they know what they're doing -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK, so now Lizzie O'Leary, I'm curious. Is this thing going to land on a normal runway at Dulles?
O'LEARY: It is going to land on a normal runway at Dulles. It's going to land on runway 1R. In fact, when you are hearing and playing that little clip of the air traffic control, you could hear them talking to the pilots and the call sign of the plane, Pluto 9-5.
And when you heard them talking about 1R that's the designated runway for this plane. You heard them talk about a couple of things including the kind of winds feeling and probably a head wind taking this plane on to that runway.
The wind coming out of the north and they will be coming on approach up from the south. You just saw a few minutes ago, you got to see the great shot of the shuttle and the 747 banking near the U.S. capitol.
Remember, this is an air space that is often quite protected. You don't get to see a lot of planes flying low and close over the National Mall on any occasion to see really a double decker contraption with the shuttle on it is doubly unusual.
COSTELLO: I know. It looked really cool and looked like the Jefferson Memorial, too. But I only saw half the monument so I couldn't tell, but what an awesome sight. We're going to stay with this. We're going to take a break. When we come back, hopefully this thing will be landed. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: OK. You are looking at the space shuttle "Discovery" on the back of a Boeing 747. It took off from Florida earlier this morning and it's now flying over Washington, D.C. It's sort of a final farewell to the space shuttle mission, to the space shuttle "Discovery."
And then eventually land we think at 10:30 Eastern Time now at Dulles where it will be taken to a building that's part of the Smithsonian Institution.
And if you're in Washington, D.C. this Friday, you can go in and look at the shuttle "Discovery" up close and personal because it will be on display. Lizzie O'Leary, she's at Dulles. She has a former "Discovery" astronaut with the name Joseph Allen. Introduce us.
O'LEARY: Yes. Carol, you said up close and personal. Joe Allen has been up close and personal with "Discovery" and with "Columbia." So you flew on both of these shuttles. What is it like to fly inside "Discovery"?
JOSEPH ALLEN, FORMER "DISCOVERY" ASTRONAUT: The most fun you can imagine. It's just the most -- it's an out of the world experience without any question. It's, of course, silent. It's very quiet. And you're floating all the time and you're moving at such a rate of speed. It is hard to believe.
O'LEARY: Now describe for me, you're a mission specialist. You had a very cool mission. One of the things that "Discovery" did was take and remove satellites in orbit. Tell us about that.
ALLEN: Well, we -- it's basically we call this a space transportation system so basically the shuttle was used to deliver things to orbit, satellites, but also, the International Space Station piece by piece by piece. But it can also pick up things in orbit.
Our mission, which is number 14, we picked up two large satellites, brought them back. They were in perfectly good working condition, but they were in the wrong place so we salvaged them, brought them back and they were refurbished on the ground and later re-launched.
O'LEARY: You also had a particularly historic experience. You have an astronaut for 18 years, but you were in the control room for what?
ALLEN: Well, for the "Apollo" missions so I actually talked to people on the moon before I'd ever made an international telephone call if you can believe that.
O'LEARY: That's amazing. This is with this flight really the end of the shuttle program. We're seeing "Discovery" come to the resting place here. What's that like for you to watch that?
ALLEN: I have a tear in my eye and I will when I see it again.
O'LEARY: Did you when it came over us early?
ALLEN: I did, yes. It's very, very emotional experience and I'm sorry that this nation is out of the space travel business for a while, but hopefully we'll get back in.
O'LEARY: All right, Joseph Allen, thank you very, very much for joining us.
ALLEN: Thank you very much.
O'LEARY: Joseph Allen who flew both on "Discovery" and on "Columbia," which of course, you know was a sister ship to "Discovery."
We are waiting for it to come back here after the flyover of the National Mall, Carol. It should be here in probably -- everybody's looking at the watches and coming back out to the deck to look probably about 8, 10 minutes. We are hoping.
COSTELLO: I think she is taking her time, Lizzie. I do. Let's go back to Florida. John Zarrella, Lizzie just spoke with a former "Discovery" astronaut.
He said as it flew over Dulles, he had a tear in his eye and I know you heard some emotional stories from astronauts there in Florida that watched "Discovery" take off for Washington.
ZARRELLA: Yes, no question about it. But, you know, Joe Allen, wonderful, wonderful human being. I've, you know, I've spoken with him on many occasions and you know, the flight he was described picking up those two satellites and brought them back, I'll never forget the images.
Here are guys out there with the man maneuvering units over to the satellites, hooking on to the satellites and then driving them back in to the cargo bay and they called themselves, and held up a sign in the mid deck area after they'd made the successful recovery of the satellite.
They're all smiling and they held up a sign saying ace repo company. That's what their name was. You know? It's phenomenal what the accomplishments of the space shuttle were over the years. Certainly, we know about the tragic accidents.
But the astronauts that I spoke with here, the seven -- the six, six who flew on the very last "Discovery" mission February 14 months ago, to a person, their word was, you know, it's sad.
It's sad to see it go. We know we have to move on as a nation to something new. Something that is safer, more reliable, down the road. But without question, the shuttles still could have flown. There was a lot of good life left in those vehicles. You know, as every -- as Commander Steve Lindsey told me that commanded the last flight.
And he was the head of the astronaut office in Houston, said to me, you know, their mantra after the "Columbia" accident to make each flight safer and safer until the very last shuttle flight would be the safest they ever flew.
And clearly, Carol, I see a picture now from NASA of the runway of Dulles and probably getting close. Every shuttle flight was clean and perfect in those last missions. No glitches. And they're very, very proud at NASA of that accomplishment.
COSTELLO: It's interesting. I was there in Florida for the last takeoff of the shuttle along with you, John Zarrella. I was actually standing on a beach far from the launch pad and you could see the shuttle take off.
There are hundreds of people there and you felt Americans coming together. Let's watch the landing. Shall we? I'm sorry. This is the takeoff. I thought it was the landing already.
Going back to my story, you could feel like a patriotic spirit among the crowd. They were singing patriotic songs, hands over the hearts, people were crying.
It was just -- you felt that America came together as that shuttle took off. That's a feeling we don't get much in America anymore.
ZARRELLA: No, no. Beyond that from a scientific standpoint or a standpoint of the future, you know, so many young people in this country during the "Apollo" years and watching Americans walk on the moon, you know, a dozen Americans walked on the moon.
People who saw that, so much inspiration, so many people that went in to the sciences, in to math, in to engineering, in to astronomy. All of that great push in the sciences, sciences in our universities was a result almost directly of the "Apollo" era and the space shuttle era.
One of the great concerns that we have in this country now is that with the inspiration of shuttle, you know, gone, is there going to be a lag? Is there going to be, you know, sort of a downturn in people getting in to the maths and sciences?
Are we going to relinquish our place as a leader to other nations because of the fact that we no longer have that inspirational flight that people as you said, people look up and you see that and you go, wow. That's spectacular.
COSTELLO: Man, I'm doing it now.
ZARRELLA: We let it go.
COSTELLO: I just want to interpret you for a second because we understand helicopters are now hovering over Dulles on the runway where this is supposed to land. Is that normal? What are they doing, John?
ZARRELLA: Yes. They're going to probably -- they'll be recording it. You probably get live pictures from those helicopters, as well. And I think NASA knows that, you know, you've been on. We have all been on and milking this and fly until -- maybe we should tell them it's time to land.
You know, they're really getting their money's worth out of in flyover right now. You have the helicopters up. You will probably get NASA -- NASA will have pictures of the vehicle from both the ground and probably from helicopter shots, as well.
COSTELLO: OK, let's go back in Dulles and check in with Lizzie.
ZARRELLA: There it is.
COSTELLO: OK, Lizzie, what's happening?
O'LEARY: All right, so we are seeing the T-38 come in which is the plane that's been accompanying the shuttle. And off in the distance there's something that everybody is starting to point at, over my right shoulder.
You have the NASA shot that's better. It will begin a slow bank around. Right now, the plane is flying south and going to land from the south and will come around and then land on this runway essentially come from the south and land north. You can see it starting to come in.
COSTELLO: So this is the chase plane we're seeing.
O'LEARY: Everybody is trained watching this thing.
COSTELLO: We were just seeing a picture of the chase plane landing.
O'LEARY: Yes. Yes.
COSTELLO: So that's that. So is everyone holding their breath now?
O'LEARY: That's a T-38. Everyone is holding their breath waiting for the double contraption, which is kind of passing just behind me. And it's essentially going to bank around before it comes in for a landing.
And it will land on almost the exact same path that you saw on the flyover before. That shot that came right over everybody's head, it's going to do it again and get down on runway 1R.
COSTELLO: I can't wait because that was spectacular, Lizzie.
O'LEARY: Well, you're definitely going to get it again. I think Joe Allen who talked to us before described watching this as having a tear in his eye. He probably won't be the only one out here watching that with the same reaction.
COSTELLO: You think NASA's milking this because they're doing the transmission thing again? Let's listen for a little to see what they say.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn over on contact ground one, two, one point niner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 1219 at the end here.
COSTELLO: I knew they'd stop talking as soon as I did that, Lizzie. I heard it like in the background. I think they're flying at 2,000 feet but I'm not quite sure about that. Can you see it?
O'LEARY: I can see it. Yes. I can see it in the air behind me. It is just essentially off my right shoulder directly behind me and you're starting to see a long, low loop and it's going to do a long, low loop before it turns and makes its final approach here at Dulles.
And as you noted you pointed out those helicopters, Carol. That's what happens when they close the air space. We started to see those so we knew that that was the signal that it was coming. And it's going to be making its way around and probably a few more minutes before it actually makes that really spectacular shot.
COSTELLO: So is John Zarrella right? Was NASA -- is NASA milking this?
ZARRELLA: I'm telling you, Carol. I -- you know I mean, this is -- it's great. I mean it's great theater. There's no question about it. And you know we use that word "bittersweet" and it is bittersweet theater to watch it coming around there.
And you know, the T-38 that flew in ahead, we saw it leave here just before the shuttle, you know, left here this morning. And you know, that's the training aircraft that the astronauts always fly in on. The astronaut crews they always arrive here at the Kennedy Space Center and they fly in those T-38s. Sometimes down the Patrick Air Force Base, sometimes right out here at the -- at the shuttle landing strip. And they fly in out of Houston.
In fact, there were three of those T-38s or four of them parked out there today. And that was from the crew that was -- that was here that STS-133 crew that last crew to fly "Discovery" that flew in under T-38s from Houston several of them.
So there you go. You -- you can see it really clearly now coming in to view there on that -- on that NASA television picture. Just what a spectacular sight, just absolutely awesome.
COSTELLO: Have you been inside a shuttle, John?
ZARRELLA: Yes, I -- you know, I almost -- I hate to bring that up because it feels like I'm gloating but, yes, I've been inside two of the three shuttles, inside "Endeavour" and inside "Discovery." I was inside "Discovery" about a year or just after it returned from its final flight with Bob Cabana, the head of the Kennedy Space Center who had flown it -- flown it twice. You know, it -- it -- I've -- this one story I have said all the time, it is small. And people think wow this thing is huge. The cargo bay is absolutely enormous but that mid deck section where we see -- not where the pilot and co-pilot sit but down the mid deck area where we see them usually hanging out during the missions and all. It seems like it's really big but when you stand inside there, it's really not much bigger than the size of some people's walk-in closet.
I mean, it is, it is pretty cramped in there and they've got to -- you know that's where their food is, that's where their bathroom is. That's where they hang out. You know? So much is done there and all the avionics is in there. And it's really a pretty small area.
So -- but yes, I've crawled in and crawled through and then sat up in the -- in the commander's seat and that is something that, you know, I will absolutely take to my grave as two moments in history for me that I will never, ever forget is those opportunities, yes.
COSTELLO: Oh I totally get that. That is something to cherish.
Barbara Starr is on the line now. She's been talking to her friends and her sources at the Pentagon and they've been watching this, too. Barbara?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, absolutely, Carol. We all went outside hundreds of people at the Pentagon pouring outside on this beautiful morning to watch the fly by. Everyone was out there from the lowest ranking privates and sergeants all the way up to generals and admirals with stars on their shoulders. Everybody wanted to go outside and have a look.
And you know, here at the Pentagon, you don't often get to report news with a smile on your face something pleasant. And this really was a beautiful morning. A lot of Air Force people out there cheering it on. The shuttle flew right over our heads and people erupted in cheers. There were horns honking on the road next to us.
So a lot of -- for once, for once, a lot of good cheer here at the Pentagon and a lot of kind of warm feelings by the military looking at this piece of history passing them by. We were able to chat with a couple of different Air Force people out there who offered all kinds of thoughts and advice about what was going on, kind of explained the whole chase plane bit to us.
I think we're all waiting to see what photos the crew up in the shuttle and in the chase plane got of Washington out on the streets this morning looking up at them.
We're going to have some pictures we'll post on our own CNN security clearance blog a little bit later of our very unique view here at the Pentagon because it was fascinating. It just went right over our heads. We could see the underbelly of the whole thing, very close by.
And then, of course, we've all been watching as it continues sort of on this slow loop around the nation's capital and gets ready to land at Dulles Airport -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes Barbara we think it's making the final turn and it will land in just a couple of minutes but we've been wrong before. But we think it's going to land shortly. But you're right I can't imagine because planes don't fly over the Pentagon every day.
STARR: Well, they don't. I mean there is a lot of bad memories of what happened here more than ten years ago. So for people to be out there looking at planes, smiling, laughing, honking horns, waving and clapping is quite a change from what this building and these people have known here.
This was a morning all of good feelings about seeing a plane flying overhead. And that was an awfully nice -- an awfully nice thing to see and a really nice thing to be able to report for once around here.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes. It's very cleansing.
STARR: It was a -- a real piece of history, you know, flying by. And I think that's part of the reason that so many military people came out of their offices to stand on the Pentagon lawn, on the bridges, on the roads around the building to have a look up in to the skies and see this piece of history flying by.
Sort of the -- I suppose the real marriage of civilian space technology with some help from the -- from the military.
COSTELLO: Let's go -- thank you, Barbara. Let's go back to Lizzie O'Leary because as I said we think that this thing is making its final turn but we're not so sure. Lizzie is on the ground there. What do you think?
O'LEARY: Well, it is making its final turn. But this is we should point out a very, very big double contraption because you've got, of course, both the shuttle and a 747, both of which are very large so the final turn is not exactly like pulling a u-turn in your car.
It takes quite a bit for it to come all the way around. It came all the way around behind us. It's making its final turn out of view and then will come back this way, go behind me and land just over there. This is a long process, believe it or not, to maneuver that very large contraption around to get it down on to the runway but it should come right over our heads, probably in a few minutes, five, six minutes is the guess right now.
But as you -- as you pointed out, we've been a little bit wrong before just waiting for this thing to come in to view.
COSTELLO: Ok. So Dulles is a busy airport. They're not closing it down for this, right? It's still up and running.
O'LEARY: Yes. They've been closing the air space in the times when the shuttle has been either on its fly by or getting ready to land. And that, of course, has been sort of what everyone here has been watching and waiting for. We've seen some other planes be able to come in and out this morning but at the times where it's getting critical like right now, this air space is closed. The only thing you see are a couple of news helicopters trying to get a perfect image of a -- of the shuttle landing.
COSTELLO: Well, you know, you -- when you're flying, sometimes you can like look out and see another plane that's landing. Can you imagine looking out the window saying what is that?
O'LEARY: Well, absolutely. And people have captured great images before out of airplane windows of shuttle launches. That is something that people like to do. And in fact, we've had someone -- I think of "Discovery" that people have taken essentially leaning over and maybe climbing over the person next to them taking a shot out the window.
But at this point I should say that everybody, there are several hundred people up here, we are all sort of peering out toward the sky and that tailgate atmosphere of people down in the parking lot beneath us they're also all watching, too. Everybody is turned and waiting on this approach path waiting for "Discovery's" final landing.
COSTELLO: Ok. So it's going to take a couple of minutes. We're going to take another break. Because we've got to make the money here at CNN but we're not going to miss the landing. Don't worry. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back. Also welcome to our international viewers around the world.
We are awaiting, the space shuttle "Discovery"; it's on the back of a Boeing 747. It took off from Florida earlier this morning flying to Dulles International Airport and then it will taken in to a big warehouse that's actually part of the Smithsonian Institution and people will get to go see it. they'll be able to look at the space shuttle "Discovery" in that museum on the ground.
We are just waiting for it to take its final turn over Dulles International Airport in Virginia and land. Our Lizzie O'Leary has been on the scene, giving us -- wow, you've just been giving us fantastic coverage, Lizzie. This is the final turn, right?
O'LEARY: This is the final turn. And I wish I could tell you that I could see the entire approach path, Carol. The building that "Discovery" will finally rest in once it is taken off that specially modified 747 in some ways blocks our view of the entire flight path. So get ready to hear a cheer when this thing comes in to view.
It has started and already taken part of that final turn. Come around and essentially it is landing from the south and that's the path it will take when it lands here at Dulles. It is a little windy here. A little bit of a head wind but that's really nothing to a 747.
COSTELLO: I understand perfectly. John Zarrella is in Florida. He watched this thing take off earlier this morning. Tell us again who's on board that plane, John.
ZARRELLA: Well, you have got a commander on board the plane and then along with the commander, you have a weather pilot and, of course, he just got to sit back and relax today. There wasn't any weather here. There wasn't any up in Washington. It's such a gorgeous day. Another pilot, as well. And then you have an FAA representative and two flight engineers as well. so you had six people on board and, you know, Carol, I think when they send "Endeavour" out to California I'm going to see if you and I and we'll take Lizzie with us if she wants to go, maybe we can hitch a ride on that flight in that 747 when they take "Endeavour" out to California in the fall.
COSTELLO: Are you kidding?
ZARRELLA: That would be pretty cool.
COSTELLO: I think Lizzie and I are in.
ZARRELLA: I think it's a pipe dream on my part but it's good to dream.
COSTELLO: Oh, it sure is. You have to dream and you have to dream big. Right?
ZARRELLA: You know -- and yes. And, you know, Carol, Carol, real quick anecdote to what Barbara Starr said. The shuttle "Atlantis" was built as a military shuttle. It was going to do all the secret missions for the military and they had built an entire shuttle complex out at Vandenberg Airport in California -- Vandenberg -- just for the military shuttle.
And after the "Challenger" accident when "Challenger" took place, that was the end of the plans and the military decided, nope, we are not going to rely on the space shuttles. But "Atlantis" was built to be a military shuttle and to fly all those the secret spy satellites and DOD missions out of California.
COSTELLO: Wow. That's fascinating history. You know that Boeing 747 with the space shuttle "Discovery" on its back flew over the Washington Mall. That means it flew past the Washington Monument, then flew past the National Harbor in It flew past the Jefferson memorial, the Pentagon. What an amazing sight for people on the ground and, Lizzie, you were describing how people are holding their breath right now at Dulles International Airport just waiting for this plane to land.
O'LEARY: They're waiting for this plane to land and, Carol, we should point out, it's going to land on a runway that's about two miles long. Remember, it takes a fair amount of runway -- what you're really talking about is the space they needed to get going and take off both with the 747 and then with the shuttle on top of it. They also need a pretty long runway to land here, too. Just because of the size of what we're talking about. Both the shuttle and then the larger plane, that is retro fitted to carry it.
COSTELLO: Are the helicopters still hovering above that runway or are they gone now?
O'LEARY: They are. They are hovering above this runway. So we're all kind of in suspended animation mode at this point. We can see the helicopters and at this point we are all staring in to this little bit of sky where we know that "Discovery" and the ship that you have heard it referred to as Pluto 9-5 on the air traffic control. That's NASA 905, that 747 that's carrying it.
When you listen to the air traffic controllers, that's the call sign. Pluto 9-5 I know you were playing some of that earlier.
COSTELLO: It is cool, actually. NASA's, you know, they're transmitting just as if they would if the shuttle were taking off and blasting in to space. Let's listen for second.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Subject aircraft is going to be making a left turn to the northwest about 320 heading out of here on the go climbing up to 3,000.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And as for the rest of the you guys, information's on (inaudible) the aircraft is climbing up to the northwest, climbing well above you but in your vicinity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Roger. We'll keep an eye out.
COSTELLO: We're taking a look at the traffic, Lizzie because I know that NASA wanted to land the plane before traffic became heavy at Washington, D.C. But I guess it's too late for that, huh?
O'LEARY: Yes. It's a little too late for that. And actually, the one big road on the way out and back from Dulles is probably your most trafficked road in Washington. People talk about the Beltway but that's not really the bad one. The one all the way out here is. But you probably have somewhat amazed drivers wondering what's going on in the sky above them as they got a little view of the shuttle on the way both to and from the National Mall because it would have gone right over the traffic that you showed that picture of.
COSTELLO: Yes. If I was stuck in traffic and I didn't know why I was stuck in traffic and then found out later I missed the space shuttle flying over the highway, I would be really mad.
Let's go back to John Zarrella. I'm wondering about these helicopters. Why are they there?
ZARRELL: Well, I mean, I think some of them could be media helicopters, as well. I know there were media -- there it is coming in. That's a sensational shot. But you know, hopefully those helicopters are, you know, NASA helicopters to record for prosperity and maybe get some live pictures from the air of it making that final approach, you know, down that runway as Lizzie said. You know the runway here is three miles long, you know, the shuttle runway because they need all of that when they're landing a shuttle. And they certainly needed most of it to take off in that 747 this morning. With the shuttle on its back.
So yes, they need that long runway, that's for sure but I think it's some of those are news outlet helicopters that may be up there, as well. There were a few flying around here when it -- when "Discovery" took off.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: Yes. And we appreciate those local affiliates and their news helicopters because they're providing some of these beautiful pictures for us.
You know, the shuttle is so heavy, John Zarrella, how fast can that Boeing fly with that shuttle on its back?
ZARRELLA: It is about 300 miles per hour anyway. Maybe more than that. It took long -- you know, the flight time to Washington, D.C. is probably two hours and, you know, 15 minutes or so. And it took a lot longer with the shuttle on its back so, you know, it's probably flying 350, maybe 400 miles an ER hour heading up the East Coast. Enough to get the lift and get up there but they have to be very, very careful, you know, with their speed and with their altitude and it's a real, real -- you know, juggling act to get it all just right. And again as we pointed out, a veteran crew specially trained to do this.
You know you had great shots just there. Looks like pretty much coming pretty close to final approach now. As NASA continues to milk this for us, Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, I think NASA just cleared a low approach and I'm no pilot and I'm no pilot so I don't know what that means but it seems to me it's kind of like four miles out or something like that.
ZARRELLA: Yes. I missed that, as well. I wasn't clear on what they had said. How far out. I see and looking at that, the landing gear on the 747 are still -- they're not down. I don't believe. Are they? Are they down yet?
COSTELLO: They're not. They're not.
ZARRELLA: I don't think they are which is -- they're not. That's an indication that maybe they're going to do another fly by before they land. Because they're awful low to the ground now, aren't they? They're pretty low to the ground there.
COSTELLO: I would think so. It looks that way to me. But it's hard to tell from this picture because you know, your perspective is skewed looking at a television monitor. Lizzie, what it's it look to you?
ZARRELLA: But look at that -- (CROSSTALK)
O'LEARY: Here we have it. It's coming right across behind me, Carol. You've got -- there it goes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. They did another fly by.
O'LEARY: They're doing another fly by. That gear is up.
COSTELLO: Hey, John. They're doing another fly by.
ZARRELLA: Yes. I thought that's what it looked like. When that gear wasn't down and they were that low to the ground. You know? It sure looked like another fly by. So there you go. You know? Once more around I guess for, you know, for anybody who missed it the first couple of times. We'll fly around one more time before they land and, you know, here it is ten minutes to the top of the hour.
And, you know, clearly they had said they wanted to be on the ground by 10:30 because of the air traffic that picks up around Washington -- Washington metropolitan area after 10:30, but I guess they have enough clearances today that they're able do this and, you know, for the people in Washington, if you didn't see it, get outside because, you know.
If you have a shot at this, what a spectacular opportunity and NASA's given you one more opportunity as it banks to the left there and prepares to circle back around. And I would think that the next time around, Carol, should be the charm and they'll probably go ahead and set down on that next pass around.
COSTELLO: It is an incredible sight. We are going to take another break. When we come back, we'll see if it landed.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. And welcome to the viewers around the world. We are watching the space shuttle "Discovery"; it's on the back of a Boeing 747. Took off from Florida earlier this morning. We expect it to land at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. at any time now and then take the space shuttle off the back of that 747 and it will go to the Smithsonian Institution. It will become a museum piece.
Lizzie O'Leary has been in Dulles for a couple of hours now -- she's been watching this unfold. Bring us up to speed, Lizzie.
O'LEARY: Well, Carol, we just got maybe a bonus fly-by if you want to call it that. Even folks at the museum where discover "Discovery" will eventually rest, this is a part of the Smithsonian Institution. This is where you have a lot of aircraft out here, it's an extension of the air and space museum. The folks out here were surprised, too.
We were all ready for a final approach turn. Look at that plane and everybody kind of went, hey, the landing gear's up. That, of course, was just so they were going to do another fly-by. They were a little too high for a landing there. We've been listening in to the air traffic control. We heard them give the instructions to climb to about 1,500 feet so you do see that 747 banking around. It's doing a big slow left turn and will probably come back around to where I am. It is just flying over part of Virginia getting I guess one last ride before landing at Dulles.
COSTELLO: Tell us about the flight path through the city of Washington, D.C.
O'LEARY: Well, this is interesting. NASA initially wouldn't give us the exact flight path, just said it would fly over a series of spots downtown. Gave a few hints on good viewing locations. But remember, of course, and much of the middle of Washington, D.C. Is that wide open green space, the national mall, a great big lawn. You have all of the monuments there. The Washington monument. The Lincoln Memorial. The Jefferson and the shuttle and the 747 it's flying on flew over all of those.
You heard Barbara Starr talk about seeing it at the Pentagon. It is a rare thing to have a plane in the Washington air space overall. Overall, certainly, the legacy of 9/11 is a very tightly controlled air space and then to have one this big with the shuttle on top of it and to have it be a benign and happy thing is doubly rare in D.C.
COSTELLO: John Zarrella, are you with me?
ZARRELLA: Yep. Sure am. I'm with you. I think as we've been pointing out all morning, Carol, this whole thing is pretty fluid. They left early from the Kennedy Space Center. You know, they did a fly-by, Kennedy. Down the beach and back over Launch Pad 39A. Then up over the vehicle assembly building.
So we kind of knew that they were a little fluid and, you know, it's like somebody had said to me, well, this is the commander and this crew up there, you know, they have got this thing. It's just like, you know, he'll bring it in when he's ready. They're flying up there. What are you going to do, fire him? He is in control and so, you know, a lot of people had said, you know, that this was kind of expected that they would do some things differently, there would be a little surprise here and there. As much as they could do within the limits and the confines of the air space. Certainly, in and around Washington, D.C. But without question everybody got, you know, another bonus look at that fly-by.
I have to tell you, Carol, from seeing that this morning, I know what Lizzie and all those people watched. That is sensational without question. To see that thing literally a couple hundred feet off the deck as it flew by us on the back of that 747. Just, just a phenomenal, phenomenal sight.
COSTELLO: And you know, again, we're all sitting here going this is spectacular. But for the astronauts who flew "Discovery" and other shuttle missions this has got to be an emotional day. So let's go back to Dulles. Lizzie, you have an astronaut with you? O'LEARY: I do. I'm joined by Bill Reedy who flew on "Discovery" and commanded "Atlantis". You were telling me something interesting. You joined at a sad year for the space flight program. You joined in 1986. What was it like basically being a part of bringing shuttle flight back?
BILL REEDY, ASTRONAUT: Well, 1986 as you know was a tough year after the "Challenger" accident and we immediately started going about redesigning the major shuttle systems and, of course, that led to "Discovery's" flight a couple of years later, sts-26.
O'LEARY: One of the things that Joe Allen was telling us about how quiet when you are inside a shuttle. You have had an experience that not many people have had. Describe being inside "Discovery" for us.
REEDY: Well, my colleague Dr. Joe I think kind of understates it. Getting to space the first eight and a half minutes. Can be very, very, very noisy as you can imagine. The solid rockets firing off launch pad for the first two minutes.
It shakes, it rattles, it roles. You can't talk in a normal tone of voice. You can barely read the instruments. After that, you're 40 miles up. You're above most of the atmosphere the solids fall away and the next six and a half minutes is like being in an electric guide.
It's quite, you raise your advisors, you can talk in this town of voice, back and forth from the cockpit. And then instantaneously, you go from 3Gs. And this gorilla sitting on the top of the chest. Just struggling to even get a breath.
(CROSSTALK)
REEDY: And everything (inaudible). Your track list float on each other. You're arms called and it is quiet.
O'LEARY: What would someone who has never been in space not know? What's the thing that surprises people the most?
REEDY: Well, I guess for first-time pilots, when the solid rocket motors come off, there's this a huge explosion and fireball that appears right in front of your face as the Mottoers kick away from the space shuttle. And there's this huge structural bang in the vehicle and they never prepare you for that in the simulator. So that's the new guy thing.
O'LEARY: The new guy thing, let's contrast that with what I guess we could call the old guy thing which is watching something you have flown in twice, come in for its final flight. Do you talk to your fellow astronauts and what's that experience like saying good-bye to the shuttle program?
REEDY: Well, it is bittersweet and I know you hear that again and again and again. That's the only word I can think of to characterize it. The vehicle flew 39 times in space. Logged millions and millions and millions of miles. Deployed constellations of telescopes and other satellites. 200-plus people flew aboard "Discovery". it's iconic I think in the shuttle fleet.
O'LEARY: Bill Reedy thank you very much. Carol I'm going to send it back to you as we are waiting for "Discovery" to make her final approach.
COSTELLO: All right. Lizzie O'Leary, great job. Thank you so much. And thanks to John Zarrella as well. We appreciate it. And also Barbara Starr -- I'm going to step away right now and watch this thing land like a viewer and turn it over to my colleague, Kyra Phillips.
