NASA, Lockheed Discuss Spacecraft

More than 100 employees gathered in Redmond to hear NASA Orion Crew and Service Module Manager, Charlie Lundquist, and LMCO's Orion Deputy Program Manager, Larry Price, provide a program overview and recognize Aerojet for its eight-year commitment and support of the Orion program.

Aerojet Redmond led the design, analysis and fabrication efforts for the Crew Module Reaction Control System (CM RCS) pod assemblies. The pod assemblies utilize Aerojet monopropellant engines to provide primary and redundant control during Orion's high-speed re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. The first set of pod assemblies arrived at Kennedy Space Center earlier this month and six more shipments are scheduled over the next six weeks.

"It's history in the making to help deliver the next deep-space ride for astronauts," says Aerojet Vice President of Space & Launch Systems, Julie Van Kleeck. "We've been a part of the Orion team since the program's inception and we're working toward several more program milestones later this year. We're looking forward to sharing our progress and cheering on Orion's first exploration flight test in 2014."