At 01.00 MSK on 22 April, the first test flight of the American Antares expendable launch system, designed to deliver cargoes to the International Space Station, was held. Russian NK-33/AJ26 engines were used to send the rocket into orbit. These were designed and manufactured at Samara’s Kuznetsov plant, a subsidiary of Rostec’s United Engine Corporation (UEC).
Antares was launched from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on Wallops Island, Virginia, USA.
The first stage of the rocket, containing two NK-33/AJ26 engines, was successfully detached after 235 seconds at a height of 113 km.
The NK-33/AJ26 is a modified version of the legendary Russian NK-33 engine, designed over 40 years ago for the Soviet lunar programme. Since the mid-1990s the American Aerojet Corporation has been working on modifications to the NK-33/AJ26. Technical support in adapting the engine for Antares was carried out by UEC specialists in cooperation with foreign partners.
Vladislav Masalov, general director of UEC, said, “Today, the modified Russian NK-33 has found its market in the United States of America. In the near future, it will also be installed on light Russian rockets. It is, of course, thanks to the colossal scientific and technical efforts of the Soviet designers that four decades later these power units can be used with modern rockets. However, we aim not only to use existing engines, but also to upgrade their production technology. I am confident that the design engineers we have working in this area are capable of achieving this.”
This launch is of great significance to the American space programme. In the summer of 2011, the US space shuttle programme was brought to an end. These shuttles had been used to deliver cargoes to the International Space Station. NASA now plans to contract these flights out to private corporations; Orbital Sciences, the company behind Antares, intends to be one of these.
“This first launch of the Antares rocket can be seen as a historical milestone in the strengthening of international cooperation in the aerospace industry. We are ready to work further on the Antares project and hope that this partnership will continue in other areas of the American space programme,” said Vladislav Masalov.
Another Antares launch is planned for the near future, this time with a real cargo. The time and date will be confirmed in due course.
