Space Florida Lands Sierra Nevada Corporation

May 4, 2021 – The space industry is a dynamic business, and starting in 2022 we will have yet another spacecraft that will come back to Earth at Cape Canaveral Spaceport’s Launch and Landing Facility (LLF).

Artist rendering of Dream Chaser. Image Credit: Sierra Nevada Corporation

The LLF’s proximity to Kennedy Space Center and formal recognition as a designated return site for rapid recovery of precious ISS cargo makes it the ideal location for the first orbital vehicle in Sierra Nevada Corporation’s (SNC) Dream Chaser fleet, the Dream Chaser Tenacity™ spaceplane to make its debut landing. 

SNC, a global aerospace company, has entered into a Use Agreement for Space Florida’s Launch and Landing Facility (LLF) to land the Dream Chaser spaceplane in support of NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contract. Dream Chaser, America’s Spaceplane, will service the International Space Station (ISS) under the CRS-2 contract in 2022. 

Dream Chaser has the potential to land at any FAA licensed landing site that has a suitable 10,000 ft runway capable of handling a typical commercial jet. Its low-g entry and runway landing protects sensitive payloads and provides immediate access to payloads upon landing.  

The Use Agreement makes SNC the first commercial user of Space Florida’s FAA Re–entry Site Operator License and provides the runway and support facilities needed during testing and landing.

With this new development, it just goes to show that Titusville really is the land of dreams.

Source: Sierra Nevada Corporation