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"Focus on performance." Since the beginning of 2007, this has been our guiding principle at ILS. Performance can be measured in many ways, but optimizing Proton’s throw weight has been one focal point of ILS and partner Khrunichev. With the launch of DIRECTV 10 in July, the companies will be unveiling the latest developments in our ongoing pursuit of maximizing launch performance.
LIFTOFF sat down with ILS CTO and Vice President of Programs and Operations Jim Bonner to talk about the enhancements and what the benefits are for ILS customers.
LIFTOFF: The Russian Proton Breeze M is known for its heavy lift capability. What leads Khrunichev to implement more enhancements?
Jim Bonner: The satellite industry is producing larger payloads with more power, which require rockets with greater lift capacities. As our customer’s requirements and modern satellites evolve, we must continue to develop the Proton rocket to meet those demands. The enhanced Proton now has an astounding lift capability of more than six metric tons, placing it among the most powerful commercial rockets in service today. In addition to increasing the vehicle’s throw weight, these changes lead to improved reliability by streamlining production of the launch vehicle and its components. Reducing the number of piece parts and manufacturing one standardized version of the vehicle inherently improves reliability.
LIFTOFF: What is the history of enhancements on the Proton Breeze M? How long has the most recent phase been in development at Khrunichev?
Bonner: The first block of enhancements to the Proton Breeze M were flight-demonstrated by the Intelsat 10-02 launch on June 17, 2004. These modifications have had a 100 percent success rate in subsequent launches.
Khrunichev began exploring the latest block of enhancements almost 36 months ago. The culmination of two years of research, development and testing will come to fruition with the launch of the DIRECTV 10 satellite on the enhanced Proton Breeze M in July of this year.
LIFTOFF: Were these enhancements driven mostly by Russian government missions or commercial missions for ILS?
Bonner: The primary purpose of the enhancements is for ILS commercial missions, but ultimately they will be used for federal missions as well. In fact, the Russian government will be using a Proton M Breeze M on a mission for the first time this year.
LIFTOFF: Does this current block change of Proton enhancements fall into separate, major categories? If so, can you describe them?
Bonner: Yes. There are three main categories in which improvements have taken place: vehicle structure, propulsion and production.
Here are some examples. To improve structure, Khrunichev has implemented a plan using lighter materials between the stages and replaced metal interstage adapters with graphite epoxy sections. This reduces the overall mass of the vehicle and provides additional performance without any system modifications. Additionally, the Breeze M reaction control system (RCS) has been improved. As part of this, the RCS fuel tanks were reduced in number from six to only two. Part count is thus reduced yielding inherent improvement to reliability. The settling thrusters with higher specific impulse have also been added to the Breeze. From a production standpoint, the process is more streamlined and efficient as well.
Some of the Proton performance enhancements are achieved by implementing design optimizations. These are possible today by using modern, state-of-the-art design tools, which were unavailable to the original Proton designers over 40 years ago. The Proton second stage tank structure is a good example of such optimization.
LIFTOFF: The public information refers to these enhancements as “low-risk.” Can you be specific as to why these are considered low-risk? Can you explain the test program been for the various elements?
Bonner: Russian launch vehicles and engines are well-known for being built with a very large performance safety margin. One of the requirements Khrunichev has of any changes made to the Proton Breeze M is that the change cannot reduce reliability. The enhancements have been made to vehicle components with well-known environment data from hundreds of launches. We are not making radical changes to any part of the vehicle. In addition, modern design tools allowed Khrunichev to fine-tune such things as fuel tanks, and redesign them to remove mass while maintaining safety margins.
Additionally, the Russian federal government requires a rigorous, thorough testing process before the vehicle can be approved for flight. The qualification program includes multiple federal agencies who independently verify results of testing done by Khrunichev, as well as performing their own independent tests.
LIFTOFF: Are current enhancements part of a recurring plan for Proton development? Is there another block of improvements already planned for the future?
Bonner: Yes, this phase of enhancements is only one stage of an existing development plan for Proton that has been in the works almost since the introduction of the Breeze M. About one year ago, Khrunichev started working another block change program of additional enhancements that is expected to roll out in mid-2008. These improvements include third stage propellant depletion, light-weight battery design on Breeze M and mission-specific loading of the attitude control propellants on Breeze M.
LIFTOFF: Will customers be able to select which enhancements they want for each mission? What will become of the current Proton baseline configuration?
Bonner: Since one of our primary objectives is to improve reliability, the Proton enhancements will not be offered as customizable options. Doing so would create longer production times and increase the potential for error. Instead, the goal is best put as "do one thing and do it well." By early 2009, Khrunichev plans to be producing and launching only one configuration of the Proton Breeze M, for both ILS commercial and Russian government missions with a payload capability in excess of six metric tons.
Be sure to join us on July 6 (July 7 at the launch site) for a live web broadcast of DIRECTV 10, featuring the launch of the most powerful Proton Breeze M ever! We are excited to debut this capability as we continue proving our commitment to performance customer satisfaction.
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Proton Breeze M arriving to Launch Pad 39 at the Baiknour Cosmodrome
