Orbital Sciences Corporation : ORBITAL'S OBV ROCKET SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED FOR MISSILE DEFENSE INTERCEPTOR SYSTEM TEST
2013-01-28 18:10:42 -
For Immediate Release
For More Information Contact:
Barron Beneski (703) 406-5528
Public and Investor Relations
beneski.barron@orbital.com
ORBITAL'S OBV ROCKET SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED FOR MISSILE DEFENSE INTERCEPTOR
SYSTEM TEST
-- Company's Long-Range Silo-Launched Booster Completes 11(th) Consecutive
Successful Flight for the Ground-Based Missile Defense System --
(Dulles, VA 28 January 2013) - Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB)
announced today that its Orbital Booster Vehicle (OBV), which is the booster
rocket for the Ground-Based Interceptor (GBI), was successfully launched as part
of a test of the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program. Orbital provides
the OBV as part of an industry team led by The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) for the
U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA). The OBV was launched from Vandenberg Air
Force Base, CA on Saturday, January 26, 2013 as part of the test designated as
CTV-01. Following its launch from a silo, the OBV flew downrange over the
Pacific Ocean and successfully deployed an Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle (EKV).
The test began at 2:00 p.m. (PST) when an OBV ground-based interceptor lifted
off from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The GBI, which included a modified EKV,
measured performance data of the EKV as it operated under conditions designed to
stress its design. Data gathered from today's test will be used to validate the
modified EKV design.
Following a preliminary post-flight analysis of the data collected from the
mission, MDA and the GMD team confirmed that all primary OBV objectives for CTV-
01 were achieved. These included pre-launch built-in test functionality, silo
launch and fly out of the OBV, accurate delivery of the EKV and acquisition of
telemetry data for further characterization of the OBV's flight characteristics.
Orbital developed the OBV under a multi-year contract from Boeing that began in
2002. The OBV and the EKV make up the GBI, which is assembled by Boeing.
"The CTV-01 test marks the eleventh successful flight of our OBV booster,
supporting MDA's ongoing testing of the GMD system," said Mr. Ron Grabe,
Orbital's Executive Vice President and General Manager of its Launch Systems
Group. "Orbital is extremely proud to be a part of this program that provides
the only defensive capability for our homeland against long-range missile
attack, and we are particularly proud of the flight test successes achieved by
the OBV."
Orbital's space launch vehicles, missile defense interceptors and related
suborbital rockets are primarily produced at the company's engineering and
manufacturing facility in Chandler, AZ and its vehicle assembly and integration
facilities at Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA and Huntsville, AL. The company's
launch vehicles are used by commercial and government customers to deliver
satellites to low altitude orbits above the Earth and in missile defense
systems, both as threat-stimulating target vehicles and as interceptor boosters
for U.S. national defense systems.
In addition to its launch vehicle systems, Orbital's other primary products are
satellites and related space systems, which are also used by commercial, civil
government and military customers. These products include low-orbit,
geostationary-orbit and planetary spacecraft for communications, remote sensing,
scientific and defense missions. Orbital also provides human-rated space
systems for Earth-orbit, lunar and other missions, as well as satellite
subsystems and space-related technical services to government agencies and
laboratories.
More information about Orbital can be found at www.orbital.com and follow
us on Twitter @OrbitalSciences.
# # #
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13-MDA-7153 (27 January 13)
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Source: Orbital Sciences Corporation via Thomson Reuters ONE
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