Aviation Forum / Country Specific / Australian Group / August 2004

Thanks Ben,  that's definitely on the list for the next Siddeny visit.

Can you imagine the return trip on the back of their 747,   could that be
refuelled in flight ?

I'm sure that security is a big issue,  can you imagine the embarrassment of
seeing the Shuttle the next morning,  up on blocks ?

I guess SACL are trying to claim the fame there. They only employ a few
hundred. They dress security goons (that aren;t even employed by them
sometimes, sometimes employed by airlines) in "Sydney Airport" uniform, and
pretend they are SACL.

Sydney airport was ment to be the emergency landing point for the space
shuttle back when NASA planned to launch it from California, and out over
the Pacific.   However, after the Challenger accident all launches have been
restricted to Florida, and head out over the Atlantic.
As such I don't think there are any circumstances which would require the
Shuttle to make an emergengy landing at Kingsford Smith.

Yes, when I did my planespotting trip to YSSY, I took the tour too.
Money well spent. I really enjoyed the tour alot.

A must see for spotters and the likes if you're in Sydney.
I think the tour only runs on Saturdays for the public?

Carsten Bauer
numloxx ON iinet dot net dot au
Photography and Aviation
Change the ON to AT to reply

I don't doubt that Kingsford-Smith could handle a shuttle landing, but
I think there would be a lot more than 4 airports worldwide that have
been placed on the contingency landing site list.

There a five levels of landing site classification that NASA uses:

EOM (End-of-Mission) - Standard landings:
KSC (Kennedy Space Center, Florida)
EDW (Edwards Air Force Base, California)
WSSH (White Sands Space Harbor, New Mexico) - only used once.

TAL (Trans-Atlantic Landing):
During each shuttle launch there are 3 TAL sites that are staffed with
NASA recovery crews with necessary shuttle recovery hardware on-site.
(There's LOTS of nasty fumes and fuels around and within a shuttle
when it lands.  In particular, the RCS thrusters use a nasty
combination of hydrazine and other stuff.)  Some of these TAL sites
are:
Ben Guerir, Morocco
Moron Air Base, Spain
Yundum Airport, Banjul, The Gambia
Zaragoza AB, Spain

Emergency Landing Sites:
Pre-determined landing sites that are available for use on an ad-hoc
basis.  Some limited training will have been provided to ground crews
for procedures during a potential shuttle landing.  However, no
shuttle recovery hardware is on site.  Included in the long list of
ELS' are Amberley AFB in Queensland and Darwin Airport.  (Other
airports on this list are Orlando International, Sydney
Kingsford-Smith, Roberts International in Liberia, Wilmington North
Carolina, Stewart Airport in Newburgh New York, Halifax International
Airport in Canada etc etc.)

Augmented Emergency Landing Sites:
Would theoretically have been used during the military launches from
Vandenberg AFB in California which were polar orbit flights.  This
list includes sites such as Hickam AFB in Hawaii, Anderson AFB in
Guam, and (!) Easter Island.

Launch Abort Sites:
Theoretically usable sites for emergencies where the shuttle cannot
reach one of the TAL sites, but has lost all power during launch.
Includes sites such as NAS Bermuda, Myrtle Beach Airport in South
Carolina etc.  It's seriously doubtful that a shuttle could
successfully recover from this kind of abort though.

As I mentioned above, I seriously doubt SYD would have any specific
equipment on standby to handle a shuttle.  That is reserved for the
TAL sites.  (You can lookup the gear used for the shuttle landings at
<http://www.ksc.nasa.gov>.)  Sydney would be listed as an emergency
site only on flights where it would be possible for use, and the only
real requirement for the airport to qualify is that it can handle a
dead-stick 100 ton glider that needs about 2,200m of roll-out.
--
SQL> select * from users  | Justin Wigg - Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
    where clue > 0;      | http://www.dws.com.au
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Small details to correct...

Runway Centreline painting is done every Sunday night, weather permitting.
Thursdays is too busy with freighters, so it was scheduled for Sunday night.
The aircraft tyres leave skid marks on the paint, eventually 'blackening'
it. The paint is well over 100 layers thick, and flaking paint chips are
occasionally a problem.

The SAAB is well gone, replaced by an F250. Friction testing is still done,
but not at those speeds!!! 80-90km/h is about as fast as they need to go.
Water is released just in front of the wheel, and a computer does the rest.

Cheers
NC