The U.S. Air Force’s mysterious X-37B space plane landed safely at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Friday morning, completing a record 674 days in orbit. The unmanned winged vehicle touched down at 9:24 a.m. PDT after conducting experiments and testing out technologies for 22 months. “The 30th Space Wing and our mission partners, Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, Boeing, and our base support contractors, have put countless hours […]
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“X-37B”
X-37B after landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base on June 16, 2012. (Credit: Boeing/USAF)
UPDATE: Media reports indicate a landing is likely on Tuesday.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Oct. 10, 2014 (Vandenberg PR) — Preparations for the third landing of the X-37B, the Air Force’s unmanned, reusable space plane, are underway at Vandenberg Air Force Base.
The exact landing date and time will depend on technical and weather considerations.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. (NASA PR) — NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Air Force’s X-37B Program for use of the center’s Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) Bays 1 and 2 to process the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle for launch.
X-37B after landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base on June 16, 2012. (Credit: Boeing/USAF)
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla., Jan. 3, 2014 (Boeing PR) – Boeing [NYSE:BA] will expand its presence in Florida by adding technology, engineering and support jobs at the Kennedy Space Center. Financial and employment details are not being disclosed.
Investments will be made to convert the former space shuttle facility, OPF-1, to a facility that would enable the U.S. Air Force to efficiently land, recover, refurbish, and re-launch the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), a 29-foot-long, reusable unmanned spacecraft.
It looks as if two former space shuttle structures at the Kennedy Space Center will be converted for use by the U.S. Air Force: Space Florida on Wednesday advanced plans to renovate two former shuttle hangars that might eventually house a secretive military space plane program. The agency’s board approved spending up to $4 million more to overhaul Orbiter Processing Facilities 1 and 2 at Kennedy Space Center, on top […]
The Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida. (Credit: NASA)
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
NASA is still reviewing options on what to do with the Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF), which has been largely idle since the last space shuttle touched down 18 months ago.
“Regarding your request for the Shuttle Landing Facility, NASA is currently assessing responses to the recently published Request for Information (RFI) seeking to identify entities that may be interested in maintaining and operating this National Asset,” NASA Associate Administrator L. Seth Statler wrote in a Nov. 30 letter to Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll. “A decision regarding the disposition of this asset will follow the completion of the RFI response assessment and review of the Space Florida proposal.”
Atlas V launches OTV3 into orbit from Cape Canaveral. (Credit: Pat Corkery, United Launch Alliance.
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., (Dec. 11, 2012) – A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket successfully launched the third Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV-3) for the Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office (AFRCO) at 1:03 p.m. EST today from Space Launch Complex-41. The OTV, also known as the X-37B, supports space experimentation, risk reduction, and concept of operations development for long duration and reusable space vehicle technologies. The first two OTV missions also were successfully launched by ULA respectively on April 22, 2010 and March 5, 2011.
Launch of Atlas V NRO satellite on June 20, 2012. (Credit: ULA)
Centennial, Colo., Dec. 7, 2012 (ULA PR) -– Today, United Launch Alliance (ULA) cleared the next launch of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV) for Dec. 11, after a thorough flight clearance process was executed following a flight data anomaly that occurred on the Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF-3 launch on Oct. 4.
Florida Today reports that Space Florida has approved spending $5 million to re-purpose facilities at the Kennedy Space Center for a classified military program code named “Project Coyote.” Speculation centers on the U.S. Air Force’s reusable X-37B shuttle, which launches from Cape Canaveral but lands at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Air Force officials have been looking at saving money by consolidating the program in Florida and landing the […]
Col. Dave Hook, 30th Operations Group Commander, comments on the X-37B landing at Vandenberg AFB on June 16th, 2012.