Test stand could play role in President's space plans
World's largest, most modern rocket test facility
BY BOB SMITH
EDWARDS AFB - "This is a glorious day!" said Janice Dunn, Director of Federal Government Relations of the California Space Authority, as military and civilian guests gathered on Leumann Ridge here last week to dedicate the renovation of Rocket Test Stand 2A.
Originally designed and built in the early 1960's to conduct development testing for the Apollo rocket engines, the test stand has recently undergone an 18-month modernization which cost about $18.5 million.
"The world's most modern rocket test facility," according to Col. Joe Boyle, commander of the Air Force detachment at the site, has been upgraded to enable it to test rockets with ratings up to 750,000 pounds of thrust. It is now the Defense Department's largest liquid rocket engine component test stand, and can be used to perform large-scale, high-pressure testing which had to be done elsewhere.
Renovation of the test stand grew out of research by the California Space Authority as to what infrastructure would be needed to keep space industry in California and still permit the Air Force and NASA to do the research and testing that would be needed.
One of the conclusions was that all of the test stands on "rocket ridge," the Air Force Research Laboratory's facility on the north side of Edwards AFB, needed renovation. Stand 2A is the last of four that have brought them from "A stand that helped the US get to the moon the first time," as Major General Paul Neilsen, commander of AFRL, explained, to "a stand built for the 21st century to help bring us into the 'Second Space Age'."
The Space Authority helped lobby for Congressional funding to upgrade the test stand.
Renewed interest
The atmosphere at the dedication ceremonies was unusually bright and cheery, almost jubilant, as most of the conversations on the site revolved around the policy speech of President George Bush which would take place about an hour after the Edwards ceremonies.
With the anticipated renewed attention to space, both a new move toward occupying the moon and a manned mission to Mars, most of the attendees, almost all of whom are associated with space technology, envision upgraded budgets and a new era of space exploration similar to what went on during the Apollo era.
Tom Haack, vice president of operations for Pratt & Whitney told the audience that "This facility will become a key component in the entire plan." Also present and addressing the group were representatives of Boeing, Aerojet and the Air Force units which will operate the test stand now that it is revamped.
Representatives from the offices of Senator Diane Feinstein, Congressmen Bill Thomas and Buck McKeon, and State Senator Pete Knight, who had been a vice commander at Edwards during his Air Force career, and Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, all referred to the expected policy statement by the president and the boost it will give to the economies of California and the Antelope Valley.
The "glorious day" was indeed that, with warm weather and clear blue skies. Although unplanned by the organizers of the ceremonies, connections with both the past and future were noted as train whistles sounded along the tracks just north of the base and dual sonic booms from Air Force test vehicles came during the speeches.
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