Shuttle Discovery’s 2,500 mile ferry flight back to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center is under way.
The modified 747 carrying Discovery took off from Edwards Air Force Base in California at 9:20 a.m. EDT. Discovery’s “pathfinder” support aircraft, a NASA C-9 plane, departed about 9:10 a.m.
The aircraft are heading to Rick Husband International Airport in Amarillo, Texas for a refueling stop.
Teams will evaluate the weather again once they’re in Amarillo to determine the next refueling stop. Their objective is to get to Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, Louisiana this afternoon where they will stay overnight.
Managers plan to have Discovery back at Kennedy on Monday.