Space age pick for Terex

New Jersey-based crane hire company JF Lomma was brought in to lift the Space Shuttles Discovery and Enterprise during their move to museums in the USA.

After two years of planning, Lomma used its Terex CC 2800-1 crawler crane for the historic lifts.

On April 17, 2012 Discovery made its final voyage atop its Boeing 747 Shuttle Aircraft Carrier (SAC). Discovery replaced the Space Shuttle Enterprise at the Smithsonian Institution's James S. McDonnell Space Hangar. Before being towed from Dulles to its final exhibit place, Discovery had to be hoisted from its carrier and its landing gear lowered into place one final time.

When the 747 SAC transports the space shuttle to a place other than a space centre, there is a need for crane and rigging equipment. So on April 20, Lomma and the United Space Alliance work crews hoisted the 98 US ton (89 tonne) shuttle off of the 747 SAC.

This job consisted of not one but two shuttle hoists. The first lifted the Space Shuttle Discovery off of the 747 SAC. The second loaded the Space Shuttle Enterprise onto the carrier, so it could be flown to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

On arrival at JFK, Enterprise was met by the Lomma crew and the CC 2800-1 crane, which then worked to load the shuttle onto a special wheeled transport. From JFK, Enterprise embarked on a three-day journey on the Hudson River in early June. Its final destination is the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York City.