Artykuły o Stratolaunch

[Orionid]

Stratolaunch plane makes first flight
by Jeff Foust — April 13, 2019 [SpaceNews]


Stratolaunch's giant aircraft takes off on its first test flight April 13 from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. Credit: Stratolaunch

WASHINGTON — The giant aircraft built by Stratolaunch to serve as an air-launch platform made its first flight April 13 amid questions about the future of the venture.

The aircraft, the largest in the world by wingspan, took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California at 9:58 a.m. Eastern. The plane flew for two and a half hours before landing back in Mojave, reaching a top speed of 278 kilometers per hour and altitude of 4,570 meters.

Evan Thomas, the Scaled Composites test pilot who flew the plane, said the flight went very well. “I honestly could not have hoped for more on a first flight, especially of an airplane of this complexity and this uniqueness,” he said in a brief media call after the flight.

The test flight came after a series of taxi tests of the plane at increasing speeds, culminating with one Jan. 10 where the plane’s nose gear briefly left the ground. Thomas said this flight started out like those previous tests until they throttled up and did a rotation maneuver to take off. “It definitely was ready to fly and wanted to fly,” he said.

Other than what Thomas described as “a few little things that were off-nominal,” the plane handled well during the flight, closely matching its simulator. “Really, for a first flight, it was spot on.”

“Overall, we’re very pleased with how the Stratolaunch aircraft performed,” said Zachary Krevor, vice president of engineering at Stratolaunch. “The aircraft flew as predicted, which is exactly what we wanted.”

However, neither Krevor nor Jean Floyd, the chief executive of Stratolaunch, said anything about the test flight program, including when the plane will fly again and how long the overall test program will last. The company took no questions from reporters during the call, which lasted 10 minutes.

The flight comes after a turbulent six months for the company. Its founder and principal funder, billionaire Paul Allen, passed away last October. In January, Stratolaunch announced it was abandoning development of its own launch vehicles that would have been air-launched from the plane. A company spokesman said at the time that Stratolaunch was “streamlining operations” to focus on aircraft development.

The only vehicle Stratolaunch currently plans to launch from the aircraft is Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus XL, a small launch vehicle that has struggled in the commercial marketplace in recent years despite the surge in interest in small satellites. The only recent customer for the Pegasus is NASA, and problems with the rocket have delayed for months its latest mission for the agency, the ICON space science satellite.

Stratolaunch has argued in the past that the ability to carry as many as three Pegasus rockets on a single flight would make the system appealing to national security customers, offering the ability to deploy an entire constellation on a single aircraft flight. Military agencies, though, have been supporting other small launch vehicles, including another air-launch system, Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne, named as a qualifier in the DARPA Launch Challenge April 10 alongside Vector and a stealth-mode launch developer.

Stratolaunch dedicated this test flight to Allen. “I had imagined this moment for years, but I never imagined the experience without Paul standing next to me,” Floyd said. “Even though he wasn’t there today, as the plane lifted gracefully from the runway, I did whisper a thank-you to Paul for allowing me to be a part of this remarkable achievement.”

Source: https://spacenews.com/stratolaunch-plane-makes-first-flight/

[Orionid]

World’s largest airplane completes first flight
April 13, 2019 Stephen Clark [SFN]


Stratolaunch’s rocket carrier jet, the largest in the world, took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port shortly after 7 a.m. PDT (10 a.m. EDT; 1400 GMT) Saturday. Credit: Gene Blevins/LA Daily News

Built for hauling rockets aloft to launch satellites, the world’s biggest airplane landed Saturday after a widely-anticipated test flight over California’s Mojave Desert, six months after the death of billionaire benefactor Paul Allen clouded the future of the project.

The dual-fuselage, six-engine aircraft took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port shortly at 6:58 a.m. PDT (9:58 a.m. EDT; 1358 GMT) and flew for about two-and-a-half hours, reaching an altitude of around 17,000 feet (5,200 meters) and a top speed of 189 mph (304 kilometers per hour), the company said in a media briefing after the flight.

The Stratolaunch aircraft, nicknamed “Roc,” is designed to carry rockets high into the atmosphere, providing a head start in altitude and velocity for satellites going into orbit around Earth.

Stratolaunch’s airplane has a wing span of 385 feet, or 117 meters, breaking the record for the widest wing span on an aircraft set by the Hughes’ propeller-driven H-4 Hercules, or  “Spruce Goose,” flying boat, which made a single brief test flight in 1947.

Stratolaunch @Stratolaunch 9:57 PM - Apr 13, 2019
 Today the #Stratolaunch aircraft flew for 2.5 hours over the Mojave Desert, reaching a top speed of 189 mph. Check out the historic flight here: #StratoFirstFlight

Twitter

Powered by six engines from Boeing’s 747 jetliner, the Stratolaunch aircraft is 238 feet (73 meters) long and has a maximum takeoff weight of 650 tons (590 metric tons), according to information on the company’s website.

Stratolaunch’s airplane is not as heavy as the Antonov An-225 cargo plane, but its wing span is nearly twice that of the 747 jumbo jet.

The plane returned to landing at Mojave, where engineers from Scaled Composites assembled the aircraft over the last few years. Saturday’s flight came after a series of ground checkouts that culminated in high-speed taxi tests early this year.


The world’s largest airplane, built by the late Paul Allen’s company Stratolaunch, makes its inaugural flight over California. Credit: Gene Blevins/LA Daily News

Stratolaunch is part of Vulcan Inc., a holding company established by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. The project was unveiled in 2011, when officials said the huge airplane would make its first flight in 2015 or 2016.

The project was originally conceived as a partnership between Allen, SpaceX’s Elon Musk, and Burt Rutan, founder of Scale Composites, the designer of Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo suborbital space plane.

But SpaceX stopped work on its air-launched rocket concept in 2012, and Stratolaunch entered into discussions with Orbital Sciences to develop a bigger version of the company’s Pegasus rocket. Stratolaunch eventually decided against that idea, and in 2016 announced that Orbital ATK’s baseline Pegasus XL rocket would launch from the company’s gigantic airplane.

Up to three Pegasus launchers could be mounted under the Stratolaunch aircraft on the same flight. Pegasus rockets currently launch one at a time from a Lockheed L-1011 carrier jet.

The solid-fueled Pegasus rocket has launched 43 times on satellite delivery missions since 1990. The Pegasus program is now owned by Northrop Grumman, which acquired Orbital ATK last year, following the 2015 merger of Orbital Sciences and the space and missile divisions of Alliant Techsystems.

Northrop Grumman is also the owner of Scale Composites, the designer and manufacturer of the Stratolaunch airplane.

Last year, Stratolaunch announced a roadmap for its own rocket family, beginning with a Medium Launch Vehicle that could debut in 2022 and lift up to 8,000 pounds (3,400 kilograms) of payload into low Earth orbit. Stratolaunch also revealed plans for a heavy-lift launcher and a space plane that could fire into orbit after a high-altitude drop from the aircraft.

Allen died last October from complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and Stratolaunch said in January that it was ending development of its own rockets.


Last August, Stratolaunch announced plans for a series of bigger rockets that could fly from the company’s carrier aircraft. But company founder Paul Allen died in October, and Stratolaunch has ended work on its own rockets to focus on preparations for a demonstration with Northrop Grumman’s already-existing Pegasus XL rocket, seen at left in this artist’s illustration. Credit: Stratolaunch

Stratolaunch’s future clouded by Paul Allen’s death

“We are streamlining operations, focusing on the aircraft and our ability to support a demonstration launch of the Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL air-launch vehicle,” a Stratolaunch spokesperson said in January.

A Northrop Grumman official told Spaceflight Now last year that rocket motors for two Pegasus XL rockets purchased by Stratolaunch were delivered to Northrop Grumman’s facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, where the company assembles Pegasus launchers for flight.

The Pegasus XL demonstration launch with Stratolaunch was expected in 2020, officials said last year. In a press release after Saturday’s flight, the company said the aircraft’s reinforced center wing can accommodate multiple launch vehicles.

But Stratolaunch provided no updates on future test plans Saturday. Company officials did not take questions from reporters in a media conference call after the aircraft landed.

Other than Northrop Grumman’s agreement with Stratolaunch, there’s only one confirmed Pegasus XL rocket mission on contract. That mission will carry NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON satellite, into low Earth orbit later this year, following more than a year of delays caused by technical issues on the Pegasus rocket.


In this photo from last year, the fully-assembled Pegasus XL rocket with the ICON satellite is prepared for attachment to its L-100 carrier aircraft at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. Last year, Northrop Grumman officials said the company had started producing rocket motors for the first Pegasus XL rocket assigned to Stratolaunch. Credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin

The last two Pegasus launch contracts awarded by NASA cost more than $50 million. The Pegasus rocket can deliver a payload of up to 815 pounds (370 kilograms) to a 250-mile-high (400-kilometer) orbit.

While Stratolaunch’s future is cloudy, the market outlook for the Pegasus rocket also appears somewhat rocky. There are numerous rockets in development by startup space companies that could haul a similarly-sized satellite into the same orbit, at a fraction of the cost of a Pegasus mission.

But the Pegasus rocket remains the world’s only air-dropped satellite launcher, an attribute touted as adding flexibility for satellite operators needing to launch into unique orbits. Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne will attempt to become the second orbital-class air-launched rocket later this year.

Stratolaunch said pilots evaluated aircraft performance and handling qualities Saturday.

“What a fantastic first flight,” said Jean Floyd, CEO of Stratolaunch. “Today’s flight furthers our mission to provide a flexible alternative to ground launched systems. We are incredibly proud of the Stratolaunch team, today’s flight crew, our partners at Northrup Grumman’s Scaled Composites and the Mojave Air and Space Port.”

The pilots performed a variety of flight control maneuvers to calibrate speed and test flight control systems, Stratolaunch said in a statement. The maneuvers included roll doublets, yawing maneuvers, pushovers and pull-ups, and steady heading side slips.

The flight crew also conducted simulated landing approach exercises, according to Stratolaunch.

“We all know Paul would have been proud to witness today’s historic achievement,” said Jody Allen, Paul Allen’s sister, chair of Vulcan Inc. and trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. “The aircraft is a remarkable engineering achievement and we congratulate everyone involved.”

Source: https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/04/13/worlds-largest-airplane-completes-first-flight/

[Orionid]

Stratolaunch announces hypersonic vehicle plans
by Jeff Foust — March 30, 2020 [SN]
Updated 1 p.m. Eastern with additional Stratolaunch comments.


The Talon-A reusable hypersonic vehicle will launch from Stratolaunch's giant aircraft and fly to speeds of up to Mach 7 before gliding to a runway landing. Credit: Stratolaunch

WASHINGTON — Stratolaunch, the company founded by the late billionaire Paul Allen as an air-launch company, announced March 30 it is developing a reusable hypersonic vehicle designed to be launched from the company’s giant aircraft.

Stratolaunch said it is pursuing development of a vehicle called Talon-A. That vehicle, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, will launch from the company’s aircraft and fly to speeds of Mach 5 to Mach 7 before gliding back to a runway landing. It will also be able to take off on its own from a runway under rocket power.

“The Stratolaunch Talon-A is a flexible, high-speed testbed built for offensive hypersonics, hypersonic defense and hypersonic R&D,” the company said in a fact sheet about the program. That document emphasizes the vehicle’s ability to provide “here-to-fore unobtainable measurement access to the hypersonic flight environment on a recurring basis.”

“Our hypersonic testbeds will serve as a catalyst in sparking a renaissance in hypersonic technologies for our government, the commercial sector and academia,” Jean Floyd, chief executive of Stratolaunch, said in a statement on the company’s updated website.

The company said it expects an initial operating capability for the Talon-A in 2022. By 2023, Stratolaunch plans to support multiple Talon-A missions on a single flight of its aircraft, with as many as three Talon-A vehicles carried by the plane at once. “This unique capability enables multiple hypersonic flight opportunities on a single day or the near-simultaneous launch of three Talon vehicles, which may support specific operational scenarios,” the company said.

The vehicle will be 8.5 meters long with a wingspan of 3.4 meters and a total mass of about 2,720 kilograms at launch. Stratolaunch did not disclose details about the vehicle’s propulsion system, but company spokesman Art Pettigrue said they planned to procure the engine from another company that Stratolaunch will name at a later date. He added that the company is not discussing the cost of the vehicle’s development, saying only that the company “has been recapitalized by a private investor group with a long-term horizon that includes funding for its initial development.”

The announcement confirms Stratolaunch’s pivot from a launch services company to one that will provide high-speed flight test services. Allen founded Stratolaunch in 2011 to serve as an air-launch company, cycling through a series of different rocket designs before deciding to use the existing Pegasus XL rocket from Northrop Grumman.

After Vulcan, Allen’s holding company, sold Stratolaunch to private investors led by Cerberus Capital Management in October, the company suggested a shift in focus to hypersonics research. In January, the company confirmed it was interested in hypersonics testing using its aircraft after a conference paper from 2018 outlining some designs for hypersonic testbed vehicles resurfaced online.

“Our business plan is built around the operation of a fleet of vehicles with both government and industry customers,” Mark Bitterman, vice president for government relations and business development at Stratolaunch, said March 4 at a conference in Colorado. “What we’re looking at essentially are customizable, reusable and affordable rocket-powered testbed vehicles, and associated flight services.”

Bitterman said at the conference that Stratolaunch was not planning to pursue orbital launch opportunities for at least several years. “Our near-term plan — say, five to eight years — is not to launch satellites to LEO,” he said.

The company, though, is leaving the door open for future launch services. Besides Talon-A and a second hypersonic vehicle, Talon-Z, about which the company says is only “in development,” Stratolaunch’s website also includes a spaceplane called Black Ice, a holdover from the company’s earlier launch vehicle development plans.

“Black Ice is a fully reusable space plane that enables advanced on-orbit capabilities and cargo return,” the company said, initially designed for cargo but with “a follow-on variant capable of transporting crew.” The company offered no timetable for developing Black Ice.

All those vehicles will depend on Stratolaunch’s aircraft, which made its first, and to date only, test flight nearly a year ago. Bitterman said at the conference that Stratolaunch plans to resume test flights of the plane in September as part of work to win certification from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Source: https://spacenews.com/stratolaunch-announces-hypersonic-vehicle-plans/

[Orionid]

Stratolaunch aircraft returns to the skies after two-year hiatus
by Jeff Foust — April 30, 2021 [SN]


Stratolaunch’s giant aircraft on an April 29 test flight in California, the first for the plane since its inaugural flight more than two years ago. Credit: Stratolaunch

WASHINGTON — Stratolaunch flew its giant aircraft for the first time in more than two years April 29, marking the start of a new test flight campaign to prepare the plane to serve as a platform for hypersonic vehicles.

Source: https://spacenews.com/stratolaunch-aircraft-returns-to-the-skies-after-two-year-hiatus/

[Orionid]

Stratolaunch plane flies again as company prepares for hypersonic tests
by Jeff Foust — January 16, 2022


Stratolaunch says it will increase the pace of test flights of its Roc aircraft this year as it prepares for a first flight of a hypersonic vehicle before the end of the year. Credit: Stratolaunch

WASHINGTON — Stratolaunch flew its giant aircraft Jan. 16 for just the third time as company executives promise a higher rate of flight activities this year, including the first flight of a hypersonic test vehicle.

The plane, known as Roc, took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California at 11:47 a.m. Eastern. The plane returned to the airport four hours and 23 minutes later after a flight that took the plane to a peak altitude of more than 7,160 meters and top speed of 330 kilometers per hour.

Source: https://spacenews.com/stratolaunch-plane-flies-again-as-company-prepares-for-hypersonic-tests/

Stratolaunch Roc Flies for Sixth Time, Ends Flight 2 Hours Early
June 10, 2022  Doug Messier


Roc takes off on its sixth flight test on June 9, 2022. (Credit: Stratolaunch)

MOJAVE, Calif. — Stratolaunch’s giant Roc aircraft’s sixth flight test ended more than two hours earlier than planned on Thursday due to an undisclosed problem.

Roc’s took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California for a 3.5 hour long flight test designed to continue expanding the aircraft’s flight envelope. Roc had a new pylon installed on its center wing that will be used to carry and launch rocket-powered Talon-A hypersonic vehicles.

Roc landed back at Mojave after 1 hour 26 minutes.

“During the test program, the team encountered results that determined they would not complete the full set of test objectives,” the company said in a press release. “Therefore, the team focused on accomplishing:  continued validation of the aircraft’s general performance and handling characteristics, with the addition of the recently installed pylon hardware; [and] continued validation of landing gear operations including door functionality, and alternate gear extension.”

Stratolaunch did not elaborate on the results that cut short the flight, which reached an altitude of 15,000 feet (4,572 m). A company official sounded a positive note.

“Today’s flight builds on previous successful flights and hardware enhancements,” said Dr. Zachary Krevor, Stratolaunch Chief Executive Officer and President. “We will leverage this flight experience as we complete integrated testing in the coming months and prepare for Talon-A test flights.”

Stratolaunch recently integrated the Talon-A separation test vehicle with Roc. The company plans to conduct captive carry and drop tests later this year.

Engineers are conducting system integration on Talon-A 1, which will be the company’s first hypersonic flight test vehicle. The company is also fabricating Talon-A 2, which will be a fully reusable vehicle.

Stratolaunch’s goal is to provide hypersonic test services to commercial and government customers in 2023.
http://www.parabolicarc.com/2022/06/10/stratolaunch-roc-flies-for-sixth-time-ends-flight-2-hours-early/