The Orbit Launcher rocket and Air Start: As Ukraine builds its own space program - BBC (photo)
The person involved in the State Space Agency (DCAU) and, among other things, handed over a document on the possible cooperation of Poland and Ukraine on missile development, investigators were established. It is an air starting program, the first stage of which ended in 2021: created the Orbit Launcher rocket for the customer from the United Kingdom. It turned out that the program has existed for about 20 years.
The idea was that the rocket was rising in the air on a plane-on the An-225 "Dream" or on the An-124 "Ruslan". When the aircraft gained sufficient height, there was a discharge: the rocket fell on a parachute until the engines turned on and brought it into outer space. The media spoke with anonymous interlocutors in the DCAU and with expert on space activity, expert of the chairman of DKAU Andriy Kolesnik.
It turned out that 10 years ago, Poland was the first to take the initiative and interest in the project of space starting, but there was no action because of the "material interest of certain people". However, the idea returned in March 2022, but at that time the Russians destroyed the "dream" and in the conditions of lack of funds during the war the project was not able to develop, CNN wrote.
The media interlocutors explained that instead of the state, a private company joined the Air Starting program. Ukrainian engineers have brought work to the stage of the AVANPORECT (technical documentation with parts of the production process). The essence of the idea was that "a large transport aircraft lifts to a considerable height of a launch vehicle and already launches it into space. " The project was restored in 2019-20, but the state did not allocate money for it.
Instead, Yuzhmash has created a Boy Launcher rocket launcher for air start. The British company Orbit Boy became the customer of the rocket, but it was founded by three Ukrainians - Lubomir Sabadosh, Yuri Alekseev and Vladimir Usov, former DCAU staff, added CNN. It is indicated that in 2021 the first successful test of the solid fuel engine rocket launcher was held. In April 2022, an engineering layout was created.
Boy Launcher Rocket Characteristics and Features: Ukraine showed the Boy Launcher model during the exhibition in Poland in the spring of 2022. It was expected that it would be interested in foreign partners, allocate funds, and launches will take place from the base to Sicily. In particular, if investors were able to get UAH 150 million from investors, the first start would take place in 2024. "Currently, the plans to hold the first launch of the rocket in 2025," CNN wrote.
The media reminded that it was important for Ukraine to get powerful technical means given that the Russian Federation is threatening the intercontinental lacquer "Oreshnik", which was beaten by "Yuzhmash". Meanwhile, four other projects were frozen: the exit from the Antares program (the first degree was made), from the VEGA Rocket with France (engines) and the Cyclone-4M Cyclone-4M rocket, the Sich-2-30 satellite was not operated in orbit in 2022 (probably through Kiebit.
The excluder of DKAU Volodymyr Taftay said CNN that Ukraine would be able to restore the space program and bring to orbit the cargo of up to 700 kg. To do this, get $ 150-160 million. and have 3-4 years, explained CNN expert. "I think they can realistically perform such a program. It may take a little more time-for six months-a year-because of war," Taftay summed up. It should be noted that the focus earlier wrote about the space project of Ukraine, connected with the plane "Dream".