Orbital ATK [OA] for a second time has delayed its re-engined Antares return to flight, this time targeting the second half of September, according to company COO Blake Larson.
The company previously pushed back its Antares return to flight from July to August. Larson, in a conference call with investors Wednesday, blamed a variety of interrelated factors, including Orbital ATK’s continued processing, inspection and testing of the flight vehicle at the Wallops Island Flight Facility, Va., launch site. He also cited “massive scheduling” of crew activities on the International Space Station (ISS) in preparation for upcoming crew and cargo missions for NASA.
Larson said he expects to identify a more specific launch date in the coming weeks. Orbital ATK, he said, has been conducting final integration checkout of the flight vehicle to ensure that all technical, quality and safety standards are met or exceeded. Antares will eventually fly as part of a NASA Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission called OA-5 that will deliver food and cargo to ISS.
Antares’ return to flight will also feature the debut of the rocket using a RD-181. It previously used an Aerojet Rocketdyne [AJRD]-refurbished Russian engine known as the AJ-26, but it blew up in the company’s late 2014 launch failure. The launch failure accelerated the company’s plans to move away from the AJ-26.
Despite the delays, Orbital ATK has been making steady progress toward Antares’ return to flight. Larson said the company in May successfully completed a 30 second hot fire of Antares that tested its modified first stage core and two liquid-fuel RD-181 engines. The hot fire test also tested the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport launch pad architecture at Wallops Island.
Larson’s remarks are courtesy of the website Seeking Alpha.