Aerojet Rocketdyne Exec Pitches Long-brewing Concept as RD-180 Replacement

摘要

An executive with the leading U.S. supplier of liquid-fueled rocket engines said a 500,000-pound-thrust hydrocarbon boost engine the company has been developing for years under U.S. Air Force and NASA technology demonstration contracts is the alternative to the Russian-built RD-180 that Congress is looking for. The concept, which delivers only about half the thrust of the RD-180 engine, is "an all-American design," Julie Van Kleeck, vice president of space launch systems at Aerojet Rocketdyne, said in a May 22 interview here.