OA-Iuka working on OmegaA

DULLES, Va. - During the 34th annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colo., Orbital ATK , a global aerospace and defense technologies firm, provided a detailed update April 16 on the progress of its Next Generation Launch System. OA reaffirmed its commitment to the Air Force’s Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program for national security space missions by announcing the naming of its rocket, OmegA, and selection of its upper stage propulsion system. OmegaA is among the firm’s largest strategic investment that is designed to provide intermediate- to heavy-class launch services for the Pentagon, NASA, and commercial customers within three years. OA has produced more than 430 launch vehicles over 35 years. OA and the AF have invested more than $250M in developing the OmegA rocket; and the company has committed a larger investment to complete development and certification. OA’s nearly 500 employees is currently building major propulsion and structural elements. OmegA is on schedule to complete propulsion system ground tests in 2019, and is slated for a 2021 launch. OA’s workforce is expected to grow to about 1,000 over the next 18 months. The firm’s development team is working on the program in Arizona, Utah, Louisiana, and at its Iuka, Miss., plant, with launch integration and operations planned at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., and Vandenberg AFB, California. (Source: Business Wire 04/16/18)