OA-Iuka aids Delta II launch

DULLES, Va. - Orbital ATK (OA), an aerospace and defense technologies company, contributed to the successful launch of a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket that lifted off Nov. 18 from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., carrying the first Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1) spacecraft. OA’s contributions to the Delta II include nine Graphite Epoxy Motors (GEM 40), and a large composite fairing for the rocket. The launch was to be the last to use nine GEM 40 motors. The Delta II program is nearing its retirement. More than 1,020 GEM 40 strap-on boosters have been used to launch 153 Delta II missions, according to Charlie Precourt, VP/General Manager of OA’s Propulsion Systems Division. The company is already making “significant progress” on the new generation GEM 63 motor to support Atlas V and future launch vehicles, he said. OA manufactured the motors’ composite cases and motors at its facilities in Utah. OA manufactured the composite 10-foot diameter payload fairing, which encapsulates and protects the payload, at its facility in Iuka, Miss. (Source: Digital Journal 11/20/17)