![]() ![]() Discovery replaced Enterprise at the National Air & Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. The prototype Enterprise never flew into space, and is currently displayed on the deck of the aircraft carrier Intrepid. That Tundra will join Endeavour at the California Science Center, replacing another Tundra in an exhibit on the physics of leverage.Įndeavour is one of four remaining space shuttles, all of which were retired in 2011. The Tundra wore “Born in America” lettering on its front end, which isn’t false advertising since this Japanese-brand truck is made in San Antonio, Texas. Toyota used the shuttle pull to underscore its connections to the United States. The co-pilot for this mission was Garrett Reisman, an astronaut who rode Endeavour to the International Space Station in 2008. The Tundra was driven by Toyota’s in-house professional, Matt McBride. The trip across the 100-yard Manchester Bridge took five minutes. Perhaps the Tundra had some help from the four tractor units that propelled Endeavour during the rest of the trip, or maybe Toyota took advantage of the wheeled rig’s low rolling resistance. Toyota didn’t swap out the engine for one of the NASA Crawler’s either the truck was purchased from a local dealer and was kept bone stock. The shuttle’s weight was well in excess of the Tundra’s rated towing capacity of 9,000 pounds, yet the truck pulled it off. A 2012 Tundra CrewMax 4×4 towed Endeavour over the Manchester Boulevard Bridge. In the middle of it all was Toyota, whose public relations department obviously couldn’t resist this high profile event. To keep Endeavour from being the victim of a fender-bender, every tree, power line, and street sign in the shuttle’s path was removed. With barely any clearance on either side of its 78-foot wingspan, a repeat of that incident was a real possibility as Endeavour negotiated LA’s streets. While it was being floated down the Hudson on its way to the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum, the prototype shuttle Enterprise was damaged when one its wings hit a dock. The sheer weight of an earthbound space shuttle wasn’t the only problem. ![]()
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