12 In February, the Sierra Space company announced that it had received an additional contract for $16 millions of US Air Force (USAF) For further development and testing of the upper stage of the rocket engine VR35K-A. This Agreement is a continuation of the previous contract on $22,6 A million, concluded in July 2023 year to improve the engine design.
Features of the VR35K-A engine
- Engine type: liquid fuel.
- Traction: 35 000 pounds (about 15,9 tons).
- Appointment: application in military and commercial space launches, as well as in space maneuvers and landing systems.
The project is supervised. This initiative is part of the long -term USAF strategy to improve the upper -stage missile technology.
Prerequisites and development
US Air Force is investing in the development of upper-degree engines for more than a decade:
- IN 2010 the year started market research, to find additional sources for the creation of the upper stage of missile systems.
- IN 2016 year SpaceX received a contract for $33,6 million to develop a prototype Raptor engine, which could be used at the upper degrees Falcon 9 і Falcon Heavy.
- At the same time Sierra Space (Then still Sierra Nevada Corporation) started working with USAF to adapt its own Vortex engines for upper degrees.
Tests and production partners
Recent VR35K-A tests were conducted at Sierra Space testing in North Fried, Wisconsin. Florida Turbine Technologies also participated in the engine development of the engine (Kratos Defense Subsidiary Company & Security Solutions), which supplied the key components of the turbochair.
Potential applications
Sierra Space is actively promoting VR35K-A not only for missile launches, but also for use in space:
- Maneuvers in orbit and landing systems of spacecraft.
- Dream Chaser - Multiple Bosmoplan Company, which is designed to deliver goods to the International Space Station and at other points of low Earth orbit, - uses jet engines based on Vortex technology.
Sierra Space representatives have declared, that the company is negotiating with several launch providers on the potential use of the VR35K-A engine.
Source: https://spacenews.com/u-s-air-force-extends-sierra-space-contract-for-upper-stage-rocket-engine/