EVERYBODY PANIC!!!!
 |
Fort Campbell, KY (AP) - A jumbo jet carrying the space shuttle Atlantis landed Monday in Kentucky on its way back to Kennedy Space Center in Florida, military officials said.
A modified Boeing 747 with the shuttle mounted on its back touched down at Fort Campbell on the Kentucky-Tennessee border around 9:30 a.m. CDT. after leaving Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska.
"She's a thing of beauty," said Kelly Tyler, a Fort Campbell spokeswoman.
The refueling stop at Fort Campbell will last until weather clears in Florida, but the jet's itinerary afterward remains confidential for security reasons until it is in the air.
The jet could still arrive at Cape Canaveral on Monday as planned, but a Tuesday arrival was possible if bad weather intervened, NASA spokeswoman Jennifer Tharpe said.
"They aren't going to rule it out," Tharpe said. "There's so many things playing into it."
Fort Campbell officials said they shuttle could be grounded through the Fourth of July.
