keep a space shuttle around for emergencies, don't retire 1

[tom d. friedman]

with the soon to be retired space shuttle fleet being finished operationally due to age, airframe stress, etc, do you feel 1 should be pulled & over hauled to be left in reserve in case of an international space station emergency?? it's the quickest option that could be readied in the event time was of the essence.

[cozmo]

Once they ground the fleet and move on to Aries will the capability remain to launch a shuttle? The existing support facilities won't work for Aries, will they? How long will the SRB's be able to be stored?

What would be the expense to keep something ready that probably won't be able to be flown again?

I seem to remember this about the Saturn program. Just a few years after the launch of the the last Saturn V (Skylab 1973) NASA couldn't launch one if they needed to. And there were at least three Saturn V's left over.

And even now, Shuttle missions take a long time to prepare for.

[tom d. friedman]

i liken the strategy / foresight as the same philosophy the military takes mothballing retired warbirds at davis monothan afb bone yard in the event of a sudden emergency.