29 Jul 1998

Atlas III RD-180 Engine Successful Test Firing

HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA, July 29, 1998 – Lockheed Martin Astronautics made history today by successfully conducting the first test firing of a Russian rocket engine at a U.S. government facility. An RD-180 engine with its prototype Atlas IIIA rocket booster stage rumbled for 10 seconds at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

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17 Jan 1996

Lockheed Martin Selects RD-180 to Power Atlas IIAR

DENVER, CO, January 17, 1996 – Lockheed Martin Astronautics announced today it has selected the Pratt & Whitney unit of United Technologies Corporation and its Russian partner, NPO Energomash, to supply the RD-180 rocket engine for the new Atlas IIAR space launch vehicle. A firm contract with the Pratt & Whitney NPO Energomash team is expected to be signed after approval by the Russian government of the appropriate export licenses to support the program. Lockheed Martin is developing the Atlas IIAR to reduce costs, simplify operations and improve the reliability of launch services the company provides to U.S. government, and international and domestic commercial customers. NPO Energomash has been developing the RD-180 since March 1994 and, together with Pratt & Whitney, has agreed to meet the requirements for the first launch of an Atlas IIAR in December 1998.

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