SMC Enters into Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with SpaceX, Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center
“The Space and Missile Systems Center has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Space Exploration Technologies Corp., better known as SpaceX, as part of the company’s effort to certify its Falcon 9 v1.1 Launch System for National Security Space (NSS) missions. This cooperative agreement facilitates data exchanges and protects proprietary and export-controlled data. The CRADA will be in effect until all certification activities are complete.”
Air Force and SpaceX Sign Cooperative Agreement
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STP-2 (US Air Force)
2015
Falcon Heavy
Cape Canaveral
The SpaceX schedule already has a flight. There is also a F9 flight. So AF does unqualified flights to qualify these rockets. Maybe the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing.
Perhaps they are test flights. I have heard there is a bit of friction as DOD and NASA certification engineers, heavily oriented toward reducing risk through in-depth verification, encounter SpaceX, with its tradition of moving directly from design to fabrication and test flight without much paperwork. Hopefully a reasonable compromise will be reached.
Doesn’t that person signing that document look a lot like the actor that played the emperor of the dark side in the early Star Wars films??
Don’t give in Luke!!!!!!
I have read another article on this and it gives more detail. The first 2 are not high security. Nice to see the USAF do these missions and give heavy a chance to fly.