Aerojet Rocketdyne and SMC Investing in Engine Technology
June 25 2018 - 2:34PM
Aerojet Rocketdyne is pleased to announce an expansion of its
existing advanced engine development agreement with the Air Force’s
Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) to develop the upper-stage
RL10C-X engine and continue the AR1 booster engine development
program through production of the first engine.
The RL10C-X represents the future of the nation’s premiere
upper-stage rocket engine, the RL10, which has accumulated more
than 50 years of proven flight experience. Using advanced 3-D
printing technology paired with other modern manufacturing
techniques, production costs for the RL10C-X will be greatly
reduced without compromising current performance and reliability or
impacting the launch vehicle interfaces.
Aerojet Rocketdyne has completed several successful hot-fire
demonstrations of components built using 3-D printing, including a
new thrust chamber assembly for the RL10C-X. Major components of
the engine that are currently built from many parts that require
significant touch labor to fabricate and assemble will be
consolidated into just a few 3-D printed parts, reducing lead-times
and costs. With RL10C-X, Aerojet Rocketdyne will be able to
continue to offer a highly-reliable, high-performance upper-stage
engine at reduced costs to its customers.
“Aerojet Rocketdyne has extensive experience building rocket
engines for most of the nation’s preeminent launch vehicles and we
will continue that legacy with the RL10C-X engine,” said Eileen
Drake, CEO and president of Aerojet Rocketdyne. “We’re also excited
to continue development of the AR1 engine; this is an American
engine with a bright future.”
The AR1 uses liquid-oxygen (LOX)/kerosene (RP-1) to provide over
500,000 pounds of thrust and is suited to power the core stage of
current and future medium- to heavy-lift launch vehicles. It
incorporates industry-leading manufacturing technology, including
3-D printing to enhance affordability.
“We are currently manufacturing our first complete AR1 engine
that will be ready for hot-fire testing in 2019,” added Drake. “AR1
is an ideal engine for a wide number of applications; it brings
together the right propellant combination, thrust level, size and
performance for launch vehicles in the medium to heavy class. In
combination with the RL10C-X upper-stage engine, the AR1 will
further drive down the cost of launch propulsion with the schedule
confidence and mission assurance of a flight-proven company. I
remain steadfast that Aerojet Rocketdyne offers the best boost and
upper stage propulsion solutions across the launch vehicle spectrum
by combining advanced technology and proven development and
production processes.”
Aerojet Rocketdyne and the Air Force signed a modification to
their existing Rocket Propulsion System Other Transactional
Authority agreement on June 22, 2018 to fund this
collaboration.
Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings,
Inc. (NYSE:AJRD), is an innovative company delivering solutions
that create value for its customers in the aerospace and defense
markets. The company is a world-recognized aerospace and defense
leader that provides propulsion and energetics to the space,
missile defense and strategic systems, tactical systems and
armaments areas, in support of domestic and international markets.
Additional information about Aerojet Rocketdyne can be obtained by
visiting our websites at www.Rocket.com and
www.AerojetRocketdyne.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
StatementsThis press release contains “forward-looking
statements” as that term is defined in the U.S. Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. No forward-looking statement can be
guaranteed, and actual results or outcomes may differ materially
from those projected depending on a number of risks, uncertainties
and other factors. All statements contained herein that are not
clearly historical in nature are forward-looking and the words
“will,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “estimate,” “plan,” and
similar expressions are generally intended to identify
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this
press release should be evaluated together with the many factors
that affect the company’s business as described in more detail in
Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc.’s annual reports on Form 10-K,
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K
filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Any
forward-looking statement made by us in this press release is based
only on information currently available to us and speaks only as of
the date on which it is made. We undertake no obligation to
publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result
of new information, future developments or otherwise.
Contact: Mary Engola, Aerojet Rocketdyne,
571-289-1371mary.engola@rocket.comTodd McConnell,
Aerojet Rocketdyne,
561-882-5395todd.mcconnell@rocket.com
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