NASA's watchdog says the space agency acted properly when it picked new homes for the retired space shuttles. The shuttles were awarded to museums in suburban Washington DC, Los Angeles, Cape Canaveral, Fla., and New York.
Dayton and Houston did not benefit from the decisions and had asked for an investigation, alleging political influences. In a report released today Thursday, Inspector General Paul Martin found there were no outside influences, including none from the White House. The decision making was based on attendance, population, funding and the facility.
“I was very disappointed to learn today that NASA’s site selection process was not conducted in a more thorough and careful manner,” says Ohio Congressman Mike Turner, “I remain convinced that WPAFB and the National Museum of the Air Force would have been an appropriate place for the shuttle to land.”
There was a scoring error for the Air Force Museum in Dayton and it should have tied the winning cities. But NASA chief Charles Bolden told investigators that the cities he selected fit NASA's science education goals better.
The Associated Press Contributed to this report.