NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is shown inside the Lufthansa Technik hangar in Hamburg, Germany where it is undergoing its C-Check maintenance period.
A C-check is the biggest regularly scheduled maintenance event for an aircraft other than a complete overhaul. In the case of this special aircraft, the maintenance will be carried out in accordance with NASA regulations. During the check in Hamburg, the aircraft’s structure will be thoroughly inspected and repaired, where necessary. The observatory is expected to return to its base operation facility at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Palmdale, Calif. in late Jan. 2018.
SOFIA is a joint project of NASA and the German Aerospace Center, DLR. NASA’s Ames Research Center manages the SOFIA program, science and mission operations in cooperation with the Universities Space Research Association headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, and the German SOFIA Institute (DSI) at the University of Stuttgart. The aircraft is based at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center’s Hangar 703, in Palmdale, California.
December 4, 2017
Photo Credit: DLR / Clemens Plank