The last flight of the Space Shuttle: A fly-by around the SF Bay Area

Two days ago, the San Francisco Bay Area was treated to a special fly-by of the Space Shuttle Endeavour, piggy-backed on top of a modified NASA 747 jet, for it's last flight ever. Initially, I did not think that I would be able to shoot any images of the last flight, but with a change in schedule and taking a conference call from roadside, it all worked out.

On my way into the office, I took a different route which took me very close to Moffett Airforce Base, in Mountain View, CA.  Looking for a good vantage point, but not wanting to get stuck in a massive traffic jam, I pulled into a nearby parking lot, located directly across from the entrance to Lockheed Martin. I figured that this was appropriate since Lockheed was involved in some of the development of the shuttle. Before leaving my home office, I had checked online and found the proposed flight plan. This helped me determine a suitable shooting location.

I parked in Yahoo's parking lot and was intrigued by all of the Yahoo! employees who were eagerly waiting for the arrival of the Space Shuttle.

After waiting for 20 minutes, the Shuttle and ferrying 747 came into view.

It was a very low altitude flight, which helped me capture images of the shuttle from the side, as opposed to a belly shot of the 747.  

Here is a tighter crop of the photo above.

I like this last photo of the two aircraft heading out into the distance, while a bunch of the Lockheed Martin employees watch from their rooftop. It was a special moment here in Northern California, and one that I am glad to have captured.