
Aerojet Rocketdyne [AJRD] announced May 8 that its AR1 engine, one of two contenders for the first stage of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA’s) Vulcan next-generation launch vehicle, has successfully completed its critical design review (CDR).The milestone keeps the liquid-fueled AR1 on track for flight certification and readiness for production in 2019, Aerojet Rocketdyne said. The CDR was preceded by a series of “incremental” design reviews and subsystem tests, including full-scale performance tests of the preburner and staged combustion system.“It means…