Space Shuttle's "Return to Flight"

[Drince88]

Originally Posted by scaeagles

I would doubt most airports could handle such a landing. The length of the runways for something that heavy to stop would have to be much longer than a typical metro airport. I am not any sort of engineer, but I figure the shuttle probably close to doubles the weight of that 747 it piggy backs on. So I figure a military base is the only option, with their longer runways.

I know you're right, it's just that I was kind of hoping they'd be somewhere the public could see it (though THAT may be part of the plan, too). Wouldn't be surprising if the weight itself and the thickness of the runway (in addition to length) was a consideration as well.