arsTEC
HNICA by Eric Berger - 6/8/2022
ULA has a lot riding on this first Vulcan flight. United Launch Alliance's powerful new Vulcan rocket was originally scheduled to debut in 2020 but has since been delayed a couple of times.
Presently, it is due to fly during the second half of this year, and the Colorado-based launch company is still holding to the 2022 date. On Wednesday, United Launch Alliance spokesperson Jessica Rye told Ars, "We are well positioned for a Vulcan first launch late this year." However, another delay now seems inevitable, sources say, with the rocket slipping toward a demonstration launch in 2023.
There are two main issues holding Vulcan back from making its debut: the readiness of its main engines and the payload that it will carry. At this point, neither appear likely to support a 2022 launch.
BE-4 rocket enginesULA is buying engines for its Vulcan rocket from Blue Origin. Fueled by methane, the BE-4 engine is a large and capable machine that is one of the most powerful US rocket engines developed in decades. It has a greater thrust than the space shuttle's main engine. And by all accounts, developmental versions of the BE-4 engine have performed well on the test stand. But unfortunately for ULA, the engine is more than four years late.
Blue Origin has previously delivered "pathfinder" versions of the engines to ULA, which the company has used for fit tests with the Vulcan rocket. But there is no substitute for actual flight engines, which are necessary to perform a static fire test and clear the vehicle for launch. According to sources, ULA established an approximately six-month timeline, once it receives the flight engines, to test and integrate them into the Vulcan rocket and launch. To make a 2022 launch date, ULA estimated that it needed to take delivery of the flight engines in mid-July at the latest.
More:
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/06/the-large-vulcan-rocket-is-unlikely-to-make-its-debut-in-2022/
