Dave Masten: small company developing VTVL vehicles, like Armadillo. Based in Mojave with small team. Have been working on the last year developing reliable igniter (they’ve sold one) and a 500 lbf-thrust engine. Since last year they lost teh XA-0.1 vehicle on a tether, breaking off landing gear when it swung, and then breaking off the tether, landing on the engines. Vehicle relatively intact, but went on to new vehicle, XA-0.1B that used the old engines. Moving to new lower-maintenance, second-generation engine now, with 750 lb-f thrust. Did sixty tests of engine with six injector sets, and ended up with 120-second firing, which was depletion of test-stand propellant.
XA-0.2 still being built, and expect to fly it by the end of the year.
Michael Mealling describing business over the past year. Getting interest in people on new 750 lbf engine. Responding to various RFIs for low-altitude and high-altitude spaceflight. Encouraged by Ames suborbital reusable payload program.
Ben Brockert now briefing more engine details. Target Isp of 220 seconds. Has lower chamber pressure than earlier engine. Cooper now, aluminum later for chamber. Durable, can run to both fuel or oxidizer exinction. Pintle injector, with independent fuel and oxidizer injectors. Three of each, allowing nine combinations, as well as different fuel densities. Want test trailer to be as close as possible to operating vehicle, so brains for trailer same as those for vehicle. Target date for flying the single-engine vehicle is this month (April). Announcing it here, if they don’t make it, feel free to make fun of him at Arocket. Happy engine died because he was getting tired of fixing old engines.