The head of Seattle's Museum of Flight says NASA made significant errors in deciding where to put its four retiring space shuttles, and he hasn't given up hope that Seattle could be considered as a host for a shuttle — at least temporarily.

"We're a little frustrated the process was this bad," said Museum of Flight CEO Doug King, who said he and two museum-board members met with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden last week to voice their objections.

"He basically agreed with us," King said. "He told us, 'I'm sorry we didn't do a better job with it, but I'm not going to change it now.' "

King said Seattle would have outranked two cities that received shuttles — New York and Los Angeles — if NASA staffers had used accurate information on Museum of Flight attendance and international travel to Seattle.

Bolden, through a NASA spokesman, confirmed Tuesday he met with Seattle museum leaders last week, but would not discuss what he told them. Instead, the NASA chief defended his decision to send the shuttles to museums in New York, Los Angeles, Florida and Washington, D.C.

"The locations selected ensure the greatest number of Americans will have a chance to see the space shuttles and learn about their contributions to space exploration history," Bolden said. He noted that a review by the Office of the Inspector General found his selection was not tainted by political influence.

Seattle was among the losers in April when Bolden named his selections from more than 20 museums and visitor centers bidding to host a shuttle.

Instead of a shuttle, Bolden said, the Seattle museum would get a full-scale mock-up of the shuttle, used to train astronauts. At the time of Bolden's announcement, former astronaut Bonnie Dunbar, who had led the Seattle museum's effort to get a shuttle, complimented Bolden for handling the selection process with "such grace and fairness."

But since then, King said, information released about the selection has raised unanswered questions. King said NASA staffers listed annual attendance at Seattle's museum at under 300,000, when in fact, it has been more than 400,000.

And in gauging the area's international visitors, NASA used data on overseas visitors, which exclude travelers from Mexico and Canada. Canada, King said, accounts for about 2 million visitors a year to the Seattle area.

"Those are some pretty big mistakes," King said.

King said he'd like Seattle to at least be considered a temporary home for the shuttles assigned to New York and Los Angeles. Those cities may take years to complete their shuttle exhibits, while the Museum of Flight has a $11.6 million Space Gallery already complete.

A New York Times article this week detailed problems and challenges faced in siting a shuttle at New York's Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.

Museum officials, the article said, have changed their intended location for the shuttle, switching to a sire across a busy highway from the museum, on land the museum does not own, and does not yet have enough money to develop.

The New York site would take about two years to prepare, during which the shuttle would be kept in a climate-controlled tent at Kennedy International Airport.

King said if NASA staffers had done a better job of investigating potential shuttle sites, problems such as those being faced in New York would have come to light. The Inspector General's report notes that until late in the selection process, Bolden had been under the impression that his recommendation team was, in fact, visiting the bidding museums.

Seattle's bid for a shuttle had been endorsed by the state's congressional delegation, and by Gov. Chris Gregoire. A statement from her office Tuesday said Gregoire "is aware of the situation and gathering information about the selection process and final decision."

Jack Broom: 206-464-2222 or jbroom@seattletimes.com