We will now discuss the Reentry Vehicle (RV) facilities which will be responsible for launching, recovering, and refurbishing the VentureStar spaceliner.
The Phase I RV facilities include:
- RV Launch and Recovery
- RV Hanger (2 out of 6 Bays)
- Ground Transport System (GTS)
- 3 out of 9 Launch Pads
- Business Complex
- RV Manufacturing
As a reminder, Image 1 represents what the Earth Surface Station (ESS) will look like once completed. Notice that the aircraft hangers and the RV hanger are on opposite sides of the runway.
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| Image 1: The Earth Surface Station |
RV LAUNCH AND RECOVERY
The RV Hanger is where the VentureStars are stored while they are being refurbished for reuse. We will eventually have a total of 17 VentureStars in the flight inventory:
- 3 will be flight ready
- 9 will be prepared for refurbishment
- 1 will be on an extended flight
- 1 will be down for repairs
- 1 will be down for scheduled maintenance
- 1 will be gone because of a Bingo
- 1 will be lost due to accident
The typical floorplan configuration is displayed in Image 2. Each column is a Bay, with each Bay holding a maximum of four RVs. One Bay is always down for scheduled maintenance. The RVs are loaded in the rear (bottom of Image 2) and towed out of the hanger at the front (top of Image 2). The RV hanger will refurbish the VentureStars over a 6–day period. The center part of the hanger is where payloads are processed for spaceflight. The gray rectangles represent payload that will eventually be loaded into the VentureStar cargo bay. The payload is loaded into three of the five RVs in the front.
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| Image 2: The VentureStar Hanger Deck |
A towbar–less aircraft tug will pull the spacecraft out of the RV Hanger to the Ground Transport System (GTS) after the payload has been secured. The GTS is a rail system that has a platform large enough to accommodate both the RV and tug. The platform will travel on the rail using electric engines to the launch pads.
RV MANUFACTURING
The manufacturing plant will be located next to the RV Hanger. Raw material would enter the building at one end and an RV out the other end. The C–5A cargo aircraft will transport the raw material to the facility.
At 17 RVs every 4 years, that is a production rate of 4.25 VentureStars per year. This figure is equivalent to rolling out one VentureStar every 2.82 months (one every 12.24 weeks).
The facility will also construct the VentureStar Escape Module (VEM) as well as the RV Ferry Portable Aeronautics Cockpit.
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