Allard Beutel Ramp Quotations

If, and only if, our further testing and analysis supports flying without a PAL ramp is aerodynamically alright to do, as our preliminary analysis indicates it would be, then the May launch window is still possible to make. If our new testing and analysis indicates we need the PAL ramp, we'll stop our shuttle processing, reassess and work the issue from there.

The data from the ongoing engineering analysis on the PAL ramp seems to be pointing in the direction of not flying with the PAL ramp for STS-121.

They've had a couple more months to work this and after studying this problem up and down the chain they are thinking that the PAL ramp removal is more feasible than they did just a couple of months ago.