Alexis took a deep breath. She was certain this assignment would be the end of her. What she was always proud of was the fact that she didn't lose a single soldier under her command. This mission already blown that away and now destiny demanded more lives from her. She wanted to help the ground team, but if the hull wasn't up to it... No. It will be. Pushing a button on her console, she connected to engineering: "Are we up to entering the atmosphere?" she asked in a tone that relayed all she wanted to hear was 'yes, ma'am'.

Her mind started going through other options just in case the ship wouldn't be able to handle it yet. The problem was apparently that the signal from the beaming locators couldn't penetrate the derelict's hull. They didn't necessarily need to be closer, just relay and boost the signal. Switching the comms to open another line, she called to scientific department: "I need Dr. Bishop or anyone else who can tell me how far along the RF-302 is." she demanded, hoping it's sensors would be up to the task if the Tempest wasn't.