Julian Moxon/PARIS
ARIANESPACE IS TO join with a US team to compete for the supply of a new family of US Air Force medium/heavy launchers, marking its first attempt to break into the virtually closed US military-launcher market.
The Pentagon's Evolved Expandable Launch Vehicle (EELV) contract, worth about $2 billion, calls for initial operational capability of the medium lift variant in 2001, and of the heavy-lift version from 2005. The launchers will replace the current Atlas, Titan and Delta rockets. The winner is due for selection from one of four teams in 1998 - the make-up of the other teams has yet to be revealed, although Lockheed Martin will clearly lead one of them.
Arianespace Participation has teamed with solid-booster manufacturer Alliant Techsystems (formerly Hercules) to provide the main cryogenic stage and payload fairing from its forthcoming Ariane 5, which is due for its maiden launch in January 1996. Other team members include TRW (systems engineering and integration) and AlliedSignal Aerospace (avionics integration). Arianespace says that it has the "full approval" of the European Space Agency and the French Space Agency to compete for the US contract.
According to the US Air Force, cost is the main driver of the EELV programme, both in terms of life cycle and mission costs. For the first time, this has led to a decision - yet to be confirmed by the White House - to allow CIS space companies to be involved in the teaming arrangements.
Source: Flight International