Discovery De-Mated from Shuttle Carrier

Video of orbiter Discovery being detached from NASA 905, the agency's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), at Apron W of Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C. during the early morning hours of April 19, 2012.

[@desfees]

Wow! Thank-you for condensing a night's worth of work into 10 minutes! I Love it when she pops-out her landing gear at the end while suspended! I had the priviledge of watching Discovery's Final Launch from your NASA Causeway in Feb. 2010, and have posted the video. Thank-you so much for sharing this video with us! You posted on Twitter that you'd post pics thru-out the night; thank-you for that, but this is much better!

[@jngosselin]

1969-2011. What a nice human adventure ! With joy and pain. Well done all Nasa, Rockwell, Lockheed Martin and other companies technicians and engineers. Still sad to known shuttles will never return to space and stay in museum in a so good shape... but everything has an end, even beautiful machines.

[@123Shel12]

One of the best parts is at 9:51 when the landing gear is lowered. Very impressive!

[@FrankBenlin]

Very cool 9:51. Fast gear. Thanks.

[@cubanangel1985]

How's the landing gear deployed if there's no one on the shuttle?

[@LucasKussowski]

Just a tip NASA, try speeding it up for time-lapse and it will decrease the length of the video and promote the idea of transport more effectively and efficiently!!! :)

[@mrsipo1975]

Thank you for sharing raw video footage. Highly appreciated

[@apopheniacMCMLXXXIX]

There's two other shuttles that need moved to museums, remember?

[@FootoftheCrossMinistries]

WOW!!!!! Can't wait to visit Discovery next month.

[@Meiosk]

I'm guessing there'd only be the two options, an external landing gear control panel or someone getting in and lower it from there. This is NASA and they're clever little boffins so I'd hedge my bets on it being an external panel, as there would be no need to get inside and apply power, but that may have had it's drawbacks (ie temp, speed and pressurisation issues). The landing gear did just lower itself and lock under it's own weight as it is designed to do. Should just ask them I suppose...

[@Bluenoser613]

How do the ground technicians send commands to lower or raise the gear? Is there an external command panel somewhere?

[@Tim4706]

Im glad to see the shuttles are now retired there will never be another vehicle like the shuttle there all in a class by themselves please don't forget there not dinosaurs sucking money from nasa's budget they were instrumental in learning about science and exploration and changed the way we view our own planet I'm proud to have followed the program from the beginning to its end Hail the Space Shuttle Program 1981-2011

[@jacemarks5888]

I heard on of the workers say “ I had lunch with my wife” lol 😂

[@SHADOWBLACKs650]

I want to buy one of the heat tiles ? How much ?

[@JBFANN]

exciting to watch

[@USAIRFORCE621]

Glad there were NASA personnel there to make this operation happen safely cause using an improvised demate device is very dangerous as the entire structure wasn't brought in from Florida, only trust NASA personnel!

[@autexcbaty]

Why not show the whole process? Attachment of the frame, lowering all the way to the ground. less time moving a 747. I gather the museum is close...

[@cubanangel1985]

What type of pushback tug is this?

[@MitchCyan]

Don't scratch it!

[@lesliekorshak]

as if we were watching a slow motion murder...

[@tezeu21]

9:39 super awsomoe

[@lorne852]

retired and used for spare parts.

[@michelarjuna]

shuttle on eBay soon ;)