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January 28th, 1997 SPACE SYSTEMS/LORAL SIGNS $100 MILLION CONTRACT WITH KISTLER AEROSPACE FOR TEN LAUNCHESSeattle, Washington. January 28, 1997. Robert Wang, Chairman of Kistler Aerospace Corporation, a company that is developing the world's first fully reusable aerospace vehicles to launch satellites into low-Earth-orbit, announced today that Space Systems/Loral had signed a contract for ten launches aboard the Kistler K-1 Reusable Aerospace Vehicle, beginning in late 1999 through early 2002. The value of the contract is in excess of $100 million. The Kistler K-1 fleet is being developed to reduce the cost of placing satellites weighing up to four tons into low-Earth-orbits. The primary market for the Kistler vehicles is the estimated 1,400 new telecommunications and weather satellites that will be launched into low-Earth-orbits during the coming decade to support worldwide mobile telecommunications services. The Kistler K-1 is primarily designed to accommodate most of the planned low-Earth-orbit telecommunications satellites. Robert Wang described the signing of the first K-1 launch contract as a "Major milestone on the path to develop and operate the world's first fully reusable launch vehicle fleet." Mr. Wang added, "Our goals this year were to achieve four major milestones, and with the signing of this first K-1 launch contract, we have completed all four on schedule; the other three were assembling top management and technical teams, contracting for services with K-1 contractor teams, and raising significant additional private financing." Kistler Aerospace CEO Dr. George Mueller, who was head of NASA's Apollo program and who is responsible for managing the entire K-1 program, said: "The program is on schedule and the company plans a series of six test flights beginning during the second half of 1998, leading to revenue producing orbital operations in 1999." The main advantages the Kistler K-1 has over existing satellite launch providers are cost and simplicity. The K-1 is designed to be reused repeatedly to deliver satellites to low-Earth-orbit. By contrast, existing and planned expendable launch vehicles are based on missile technology and are discarded each time they are used. Kistler Aerospace is currently finalizing contract negotiations for the K-1 propulsion, electronics, structures, launch, and landing systems. The first 12 K-1 NK-33 rocket engines have already been received by Gen. Corp./Aerojet from Russia for qualification testing and modification. More than a dozen aerospace contractors are involved in the Kistler K-1 program including Boeing North American (Rockwell Aerospace), Northrop Grumman, Gen. Corp./Aerojet, Draper Labs (MIT), Allied Signal, Alenia Spazio (Italy), Scaled Composites, Irvin Aerospace, and Structural Dynamics Research Corporation (SDRC). Space Systems/Loral, which is one of the world's largest satellite manufacturers, is a major partner in the 56 satellite low-Earth-orbit Globalstar constellation that will provide worldwide digital telecommunications services beginning in 1998. Space Systems/Loral is planning to build a number of other satellites for customers that may be launched on K-1 aerospace vehicles in the 1999 to 2002 time period. Loral Space & Communications, Ltd., headquartered in New York City, is a high technology company that primarily concentrates in space and telecommunications. Loral manages and is the largest equity owner of both Globalstar, which is building and preparing to launch a worldwide satellite-based digital telecommunications system, and Space Systems/Loral, the world's premier manufacturer of large, high-powered satellites for telecommunications and environmental applications. # # # For more information
on Kistler and the K-1 vehicle, contact: info@kistleraero.com |
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