Aeroic Alpenbrise glider makes history in ground to space launch proof of concept testing.

Saturday July 20th

Today history was made in the Mojave Desert, south California. A tow plane pulling a carrier glider with a rocket attached, successfully proved the concept of the towed air launch (TAL) method that can be now be further explored and used to send space vehicles on their way into orbit or to other planets from virtually anywhere, cheaply and efficiently. This theory is not new – it has actually been around for quite a while with many tests, but with one key difference:

Chief Pilot for the Project, Red Jensen explains:

“This is a proof of concept test using an unpowered glider carrying a rocket. The tow plane and mated glider/rocket combo act as a first stage while climbing to altitude. Once high enough the glider performs a Gamma maneuver to extract energy from the tow plane and place the rocket on a favorable trajectory for launch, and this is the key and the purpose of these tests. All of the equipment performed faultlessly and the concept was indeed proved”

Why is this a historical development?

The Gamma maneuver means that a rocket, even a large rocket or other payload can be towed into an optimum launch position from virtually any horizontal runway; using a common and relatively unmodified and inexpensive executive jet as the tow plane. Using this system, gone are the large expensive launch pads and the massive super-expensive fuel burns needed to get space rockets out of earth’s atmosphere. Space vehicles and payloads can now be lighter and far more efficient, thus paving the way for a whole new era of space exploration.

Video of this historic event is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV9FygAwMAQ