Nichols Welcomes Home The Endeavour Shuttle

The space shuttle Endeavour made its final landing at LAX on Friday and who was on hand to welcome her home but Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek’s Uhura. Endeavour, perched atop a NASA/Boeing 747, touched down without a hitch on a picture-perfect day, accompanied by Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man.” As the plane and shuttle rolled toward a waiting crowd, the plane’s crew placed an American flag in a rooftop hatch. Nichols, who hosted a welcoming gathering at a United Airlines hangar, spoke of the wonders of space, the Los Angeles Times reported. Addressing those in attendance, she summed up everyone’s collective thoughts when she stated, “What a momentous day this has been.” Nichols, always the trouper, dealt with a strong wind that blew her speaking notes right off the podium. She gathered the notes and, to fill time while getting the pages in order, sang Alexander Courage’s Star Trek theme music. Click HERE to check out E! Entertainment’s footage of that memorable moment.

Endeavour will be housed at the United Airlines hangar from now until October 12, the Times noted. It will then embark on a two-day trek across Inglewood and Los Angeles on its way to its permanent home, the Samuel Oschin display pavilion at the California Science Center in downtown Los Angeles.