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Friday, 30 November, 2001, 15:21 GMT
Shuttle mission on hold
Space shuttle Endeavor in Cape Canaveral, Florida
A shuttle launch costs about $400m
The launch of the space shuttle Endeavour with a replacement crew for the International Space Station (ISS) has been delayed again.

The shuttle is now due to take off on Tuesday, to give the station's crew time to fix the problem caused by the failure of a Russian cargo vessel to attach itself securely to the ISS.

The supply ship had problems docking with the station on Wednesday. The American space agency (Nasa) feared the forces exerted by the arriving shuttle would cause the cargo ship to wobble and possibly damage the space station.

Endeavour is supposed to drop off two Americans and one Russian for a six-month stay aboard the ISS, and bring back the three men who have been living there since August.

The launch was abandoned with just hours left in the countdown as space agency managers tried to diagnose the trouble and decide what to do.

The space station crew is due to conduct a space walk on Monday to fix the problem.

Tight security

When Endeavour does lift off, there will be unprecedented security in place.

The shuttle will be protected by a 35-mile (55 kilometres) no-fly zone.

The measures, which will be enforced by the US Air Force, are deemed necessary in the light of current world events.

Endeavour will also carry 6,000 US flags which will be presented to the relatives of the victims of the 11 September terror attacks.

The orbiter will also carry New York City police badges and patches, and a New York Fire Department flag and a poster showing the firefighters who died at the World Trade Center.

"It shows our resolve and the fact that we press on with our day-to-day lives and keep doing the great things that we're doing here for the space programme," mission manager Todd Corey said.

"I think that makes a pretty positive statement for the whole country."

On board the orbiter will be Expedition Four - Ukrainian-born commander Yuri Onufrienko and US astronauts Carl Walz and Daniel Bursch - who will man the ISS until May of next year.

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The BBC's Fergal Parkinson in Miami
"Disappointed by yet another delay, Nasa officials said it was too risky to launch Endeavour"
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