Little known fact: airlifting the shuttle from California to Florida on top of a Boeing 747 is no cakewalk. For one, it requires constant weather data updated as the flight crew maneuvers around precipitation and high winds. Providing that service for Discovery next week will be three 45th Space Wing weathermen: Capt. M Mike McAleenan, TSgt. James Jones, and SSgt. Chris Lozzi.
The Air Force on March 12 awarded contract modifications worth a combined $2.4 billion to Boeing to procure an undisclosed number of E-7 Wedgetail as part of the program's engineering and manufacturing development phase and continue work on the airborne battle management aircraft’s radar.