 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace and defense |
| Founded | 2000-2003 |
| Headquarters | Kirkland, Washington, USA |
Key people | Gary Hudson (Founder, CEO), Debra Facktor Lepore (President), Livingston Holder (Chief Program Executive), Curtis Gifford (Chief Operating Officer) |
| Products | Orbital rocket launch; Aerospace Hardware |
| Website | www.airlaunchllc.com |
AirLaunch LLC is an aerospace design and development company headquartered in Kirkland, Washington. They hope to provide launch services for launching payloads into orbits around the Earth. This is to be realized through a method called air launch where a rocket is carried within an aircraft and then dropped from altitude. The rocket engine is then ignited where the rocket (with its payload) enter into a low earth orbit. On June 14, 2006, the firm, in a DARPA sponsored test, dropped a 65,000 pounds (29 t) dummy payload from the back of a C-17, the largest single load ever dropped from an airplane.[1] Airlaunch is currently undergoing upper stage propulsion development for the QuickReach orbital launch vehicle. The QuickReach vehicle is part of the Air Force and DARPA Falcon Small Launch Vehicle Program.
According to a DARPA document dated Oct 2008, the QuickReach phase 2C test firings were completed, and DARPA has concluded its SLV program.[2] AirLaunch subsequently ceased operations in November 2008.
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