Shuttle Crew Compartment Trainer Coming soon to TASM!
Pictured: STS-135 pilot Doug Hurley prepares to enter the Crew Compartment Trainer II to take his seat to the right of commander Fergson.
The Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium is excited to announce that we will be receiving a Shuttle Crew Compartment Trainer to add to our museum. The CCT is a very accurate “flight deck” or cockpit with seating for the commander, pilot and, during launch, two mission specialist astronauts. The flight deck has all the same instruments, panels, lights, seats,and switches found in a real orbiter. The instruments are non-functional, but they look and feel like real ones, and was used to train astronauts of many procedures for their space missions. With the ability to be both in the upright and horizontal position, the shuttle trainer gives astronauts the “dress rehearsal” opportunity before take-off! See below resources and photos to get excited about the epic technology used by astronauts to train!
Photos curtesy of CollectSPACE
What is the Shuttle Crew Compartment Trainer?
Take a sneak peak of inside a shuttle trainer cockpit at The Museum of Flight. This unique artifact remains the same size as the iconic shuttle itself, over 100 feet long! While its size is massive, the shuttle trainer interior mimics the real orbiter closely – it is crammed full of the technology astronauts will use and need during their space travels. Take a look below of astronaut Ferguson (left) and Hurley (right) being strapped into their seats on the flight deck while the trainer is in the upright position to see how massive this trainer is!
Video curtesy of the Museum of Flight
Tulsa’s History with the Shuttle
The space shuttle payload doors were built right here in Tulsa, photographed on the left! The 60 ft payload doors play an important role in shuttle spaceflight; these doors open shortly after in orbit to allow exposure of the environmental control and life support system radiators for heat rejection of the orbiter’s systems; in short, these doors open to cool everything down. These delicate, yet massive, doors are designed to open in zero gravity, a true rarity to see them open! Click on either of the photos to learn more about this integral piece to the shuttle.
