Flight International online news 15:00GMT: The Space Shuttle fleet will fly a maximum of 19 flights before the orbiter is retired in 2010, assuming there are no more foam loss-like problems or facility damage from extreme weather.
Eighteen will be International Space Station (ISS) assembly and logistic flights and the nineteenth will be the Hubble space telescope repair flight.
That is the outcome of the completed 60-day Space Shuttle, Space Station Configuration Options study.
Its results are now being briefed to the relevant arms of the US government and will soon be given to NASA’s international partners.
"Every single flight after STS-115 is being reviewed. The number may be reduced if we can move some logistics flights to our partners. The Administrator’s comments were a preview hint of the study results," says NASA.
Last week NASA administrator Michael Griffin was mis-reported saying there would be 18 more flights.
The planned 18 ISS flights will see the European Columbus and Japanese Kibo modules launched to the station. However there is a question mark over the future of the remaining Russian ISS modules, one of which was to be launched by shuttle.
The final 19 flights would be three in 2006 and four in each of the subsequent years.
Nineteen flights would also mean that ISS modules such as Node-3 would not be launched. This was thought to be needed to expand the ISS crew from three to six. However NASA claims this is not the case.
ROB COPPINGER/LONDON
Source: Flight International
