A new flight plan has been filed for a NASA winged orbiter and its jumbo jet transport, four decades after the iconic combination departed on its one and only international goodwill tour.
The Lego Icons Shuttle Carrier Aircraft set recreates the prototype Enterprise and the modified Boeing 747 jetliner as they uniquely appeared when touching down at the Paris Air Show in May 1983, as well as at post-show stops in Italy, England, Iceland and Canada. The $229.99 (€229.99 or £199.99) building kit is scheduled to land on Lego's website for the company's "Insiders" loyalty club members on May 15, followed three days later by an arrival in Lego Stores in the United States and Europe.
The release comes 42 years (and a day) after the 747 and test spacecraft took off from southern California to begin the tour.
"This is a must-have for aerospace enthusiasts and Lego fans alike!" read the Denmark-based toymaker's announcement of the new model on Tuesday (May 6). "Savor every moment, as you bring this iconic tribute to innovation and exploration to life, piece by piece."
NASA first used the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) to carry Enterprise on a series of piggyback trials to confirm that an orbiter that would be launched like a rocket could return to Earth as an unpowered glider. For the 1977 Approach and Landing Test (ALT) program, the jetliner retained its chrome livery from its previous years flying for American Airlines.
