[ad_1]
The successful inaugural flight of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket in February to begin with the launch of the payload filed in the middle of 2020 under a $ 130 million contract awarded last week.
The Air Force announced the launch of the contract for the AFSPC 52 mission filed June 21 after a competition between SpaceX and United Launch Alliance. The army did not reveal the identity or purpose of the spacecraft intended to fly on the AFSPC 52 mission.
The mission is scheduled to take off from Pad 39A at the Center NASA Space Kennedy in Florida before the end of September 2020, according to The Air Force said in a statement that the $ 130 million contract with SpaceX provides the military with a "total launch solution" for the AFSPC 52 mission, including included the production of the Falcon Heavy launcher, the integration and launch of the mission. "The competitive award of this launch service contract EELV directly supports Space and Missile Systems Center's mission of providing resilient and affordable space capabilities to our nation while maintaining guaranteed access to space", said Lieutenant-General John Thompson. The Executive Director of the Force for Space Program and the Commanding Officer of the CMS.
In a statement to the media, SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell said: The Air Force has certified the Falcon Heavy to carry critical orbital loads in orbit. . A spokesman for the Air Force confirmed that the service had certified Falcon Heavy for space missions of national security.
"SpaceX is honored by the selection of Falcon Heavy by the Air Force to launch the AFSPC 52 mission," said Dr. Shotwell. . "On behalf of all our employees, I would like to thank the Air Force for having certified Falcon Heavy, who entrusted us with this mission of crucial importance, and their confidence. in our company. SpaceX is pleased to continue to provide US taxpayers with the most cost-effective and reliable launch services for national security space missions.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket was certified to launch the 2015 National Security Space Missions for NASA and commercial customers. SpaceX and the Air Force have agreed on a different certification strategy for the Falcon Heavy to speed up its availability for national security space missions.
Claire Leon, executive director of SMC launch companies until December, told reporters last year Falcon Heavy and reward SpaceX a launch contract after a successful mission. Three Falcon Heavy launches would be needed before launching the national security space mission, Leon said.
The second launch of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket is scheduled for November since the Kennedy Space Center, carrying many satellites in different orbits for the US military. NASA, and research institutions. This mission was entrusted to SpaceX in 2012 by the Space Test Program of the Air Force, which manages experimental space missions in which military officials accept more risk than the priority projects of navigation, secure communications, early warning and reconnaissance. The third Falcon Heavy mission, scheduled for takeoff late this year or early 2019, will launch Arabsat 6A commercial communications built by Lockheed Martin for the Arabsat of Saudi Arabia.
The ULA Atlas and Delta rocket families are the only certified launchers to pay US government security payloads until SpaceX's Falcon 9 becomes eligible for military contracts in 2015 Since then, SpaceX has won contracts to launch up to five new generation GPS navigation satellites, starting this year.
Force the Atlas 5 rocket of the ULA selected for three missions since the beginning of competitive supply, which would have required the lifting capacity of the Falcon Heavy was awarded before the Heavy-Lifting of SpaceX is not certified for space launches for national security.
The Air Force wants two launchers to be competitive for space missions of national security. Even if a rocket fails
In a draft solicitation issued for the AFSPC 52 mission, the Air Force said the payload was to be about 14,000 pounds, or 6 350 kilograms, in a geostationary transfer orbit between 115 miles (185 kilometers) and 21,865 miles (35,188 kilometers), with a tilt of 27 degrees. At that time, the launch of the AFSPC 52 mission was scheduled for July 2020.
The last RFP issued by the Air Force last year did not appear. did not include mass specifications and orbit information
heavier payloads in geostationary transfer orbit, but they required the full throttle of the launcher, forcing SpaceX to throw the first step of the Falcon 9 The most powerful versions of the Atlas 5 rocket of the ULA, with the additional thrust of solid propellant propellants, could have lifted the seven-tonne mass specified in the draft solicitation for the AFSPC 52 mission. [19659003] ULA removes its versions of Delta 4 family next year, with the Delta-3-core triple-core flight expected to continue flying in the early 2020s.
Send an e-mail to the author
Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @ StephenClark1 .
[ad_2]
Source link
