Shuttle's Calif. departure delayed

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Dec. 6 (UPI) -- The space shuttle Endeavour's departure from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., for Florida was delayed Saturday due to technical problems, NASA said.

Technicians found that three of eight pins used to secure an aerodynamic cone to the shuttle's tail were not the right size, the Los Angeles Times reported. National Aeronautics and Space Administration spokesman Alan Brown said the pins "were just microscopically oversized," and technicians were able to reduce the pins to the proper size.

The shuttle's departure from Edwards Air Force Base -- mounted on a Boeing 747 for the trip to Cape Canaveral -- is expected to take place early Monday, the newspaper said. NASA managers plan to conduct a flight-readiness review Sunday and then decide when to allow the departure to take place.

Endeavour touched down at Edwards Nov. 30 at the conclusion of a 16-day mission to the International Space Station.