On this day 44 years ago, the United States began to build a space transportation system.

Exactly 44 years ago, on February 18, 1977, the shuttle Enterprise made its first experimental flight.

The spaceship was originally going to be called the Constitution, but Star Trek fans intervened.

Several points are important.First, the Enterprise has never been in space. The shuttle was designed for experimentation and training. Secondly, the shuttle made its first flight while being docked ... on an airplane. For this, the Boeing-747 version was reconstructed. Thirdly, on February 18, 1977, the shuttle was launched into the sky without a crew. The first experimental flight with people on board was made only on June 18, 1977. The first free flight (with landing without Boeing) - August 12 of the same year. The Enterprise stayed in the sky for 5 minutes and 21 seconds, climbed to an altitude of 7346 meters, accelerated to 499 km / h and landed on the surface of a dried lake.