CAPE CANAVERAL - Shuttle
Discovery's flight home is delayed again, now set for takeoff from California
on Friday at earliest.
NASA says Discovery's precise departure time and arrival time here in Florida
remain in flux.
Efforts to install the tail cone that protects the shuttle's main engines
during the ferry flight home slowed the preparation work.
It's impossible to predict what refueling and overnight stops or changes in the
flight path will be made necessary by weather.
The cross-country flight could end here Saturday afternoon, at the earliest,
with a planned fly-over of Brevard's beaches.
Earlier this week, the work on Discovery has been delayed by extreme weather in
the California desert.
Hail, winds and thunderstorms ravaged the area earlier this week, stopping work
at one point.
The ship sits outside, exposed to the elements, while being prepped for mating
to its modified 747 ferry.
NASA says water got inside a small part of the shuttle cargo bay, but the
damage is not serious.
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