NASA shuttles too pricey for New Mexico

WHITE SANDS, N.M., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Officials at New Mexico space museums said two NASA space shuttle orbiters are too expensive for their facilities, despite a drop in price to $28.8 million.

Monte Marlin, spokeswoman for the White Sands Missile Range, said the facility would welcome space shuttle orbiters Endeavour and Atlantis, but the reduction in price from $42 million to $28.8 million isn't steep enough of a discount to make them affordable, the Albuquerque Journal reported Wednesday.

"I'm sure people would love to have it here, but all of our dollars should go toward taking care of all of our soldiers here," Marlin said. "There's a lot of things we could do with that $29 million they're asking for."

Mike Smith, registrar at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo, said the price tag is also well out of his museum's range.

"It's all very interesting to me that NASA wants to do this," Smith said. "Initially we were told it would cost $42 million. Who's got that kind of money? I can't fathom this."