Alaska News

Clock is ticking as Kodiak launch pad waits for Lockheed

The Kodiak Daily Mirror reports that Alaska Aerospace Corp. is sitting on $25 million of state money as it waits for Lockheed-Martin to solidify its commitment to use Kodiak's Launch Complex as a new hub for satellite launchings.

In spring, Gov. Sean Parnell approved $25 million for the construction of a new launch pad at the Kodiak Launch Complex; Lockheed-Martin pledged an additional $100 million in financing for the project. But Lockheed still needs to find customers who want to launch satellites from the Alaska island, and until a firm commitment from Lockheed is in place, only $3 million of the state's allocation can be spent on the project. $3 million won't cover the basics -- only an environmental assessment and basic planning -- so the project is basically on hold until Lockheed makes its move.

One other option exists, though. The aerospace corporation Orbital Science will be launching a new medium-lift rocket to rival Lockheed's. Orbital is launching its first rocket in Virginia, but hasn't picked a West Coast launch site yet.

According to an Orbital representative, Kodiak is in the running.

Time is of the essence, however, as Alaska's construction season is notoriously short. Work can be done in the winter, but it's difficult and expensive. Alaska Aerospace president Craig Campbell hopes to have a solid commitment "in the next 30, maybe even 60 days."

Read much more from the Kodiak Daily Mirror (via AP).

Love rocket launches? Watch a video of the U.S. Navy's experimental communications satellite launching off from Kodiak's Launch Complex in September.

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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