Tweet
Sounds to me like NG just bought their own version of Lockheeds "Skunk Works".
Link....
And SS2/WK2's development may benefit from NG's deeper pockets;
Link....
Link....
WASHINGTON - Northrop Grumman Corp. agreed July 5 to increase its stake in Scaled Composites - the builder of the Ansari X-Prize Cup-winning SpaceShipOne and a host of record-breaking aircraft - from 40 percent to 100 percent, Northrop Grumman spokesman Dan McClain confirmed July 20.
McClain, who declined to disclose the value of the deal, said the company expects it to close in August pending regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Scaled Composites currently is working with Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic venture on a vehicle designated for now as SpaceShipTwo, which would carry two pilots and six paying passengers into suborbital space for a few minutes of weightlessness. The company also is building a new carrier aircraft, dubbed WhiteKnight2, that will carry SpaceShipTwo to an altitude of 15 kilometers before releasing it to soar to suborbital space.
The two companies last year formed a joint venture called the Spaceship Company to build the new vehicles.
Alex Tai, chief operating officer of Virgin Galactic, declined to comment when asked July 20 how the acquisition would affect his company's dealings with Scaled Composites. "I'm afraid I can't provide you with any comment at this stage and I don't think [Scaled Composites] can either," Tai said.
Scaled Composites, with the backing of Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004 when SpaceShipOne was piloted to an altitude just above the internationally recognized border of space twice in a two-week period.
McClain, who declined to disclose the value of the deal, said the company expects it to close in August pending regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Scaled Composites currently is working with Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic venture on a vehicle designated for now as SpaceShipTwo, which would carry two pilots and six paying passengers into suborbital space for a few minutes of weightlessness. The company also is building a new carrier aircraft, dubbed WhiteKnight2, that will carry SpaceShipTwo to an altitude of 15 kilometers before releasing it to soar to suborbital space.
The two companies last year formed a joint venture called the Spaceship Company to build the new vehicles.
Alex Tai, chief operating officer of Virgin Galactic, declined to comment when asked July 20 how the acquisition would affect his company's dealings with Scaled Composites. "I'm afraid I can't provide you with any comment at this stage and I don't think [Scaled Composites] can either," Tai said.
Scaled Composites, with the backing of Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004 when SpaceShipOne was piloted to an altitude just above the internationally recognized border of space twice in a two-week period.
Link....
SpaceShipTwo Development Benefits By New Equity Deal
Author Leonard David
Northrop Grumman’s 100 percent equity plans for Scaled Composites in Mojave, California will not impact work underway in developing the commercial, passenger-carrying SpaceShipTwo.
Dan McClain, Director of Media Relations for Northrop Grumman in Los Angeles, California said that on July 5 Northrop Grumman agreed to increase their ownership of Scaled Composites. The large aerospace firm has had for several years approximately 40 percent of Scaled, now increasing its equity to 100 percent, he advised.
McClain said that the equity transaction was expected to close in August, pending the usual regulatory procedures, which includes Hart-Scott-Rodino approval - a federal antitrust law.
The financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.
McClain emphasized that the equity change will have no impact on development of the SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle. There are to be no differences at all in the on-going work at Scaled with aerospace primes or jobs it does in its commercial programs.
Back in July 2005, Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group of companies and Rutan as president of Scaled Composites, jointly announced their signing of an agreement to form The Spaceship Company - a new aerospace production enterprise to build a fleet of commercial suborbital spaceships and launch aircraft. That new company will own the designs of the new SpaceShipTwo and White Knight 2 launch systems that are now in development at Scaled Composites.
“The partnership between Scaled Composites and the Virgin Group on The Spaceship Company is unchanged by the transaction,†McClain added. “Certainly, Burt will remain at the helm and lead Scaled Composites…and the entire management team will remain. It will continue in its current operating model as a separate entity within Northrop Grumman,†he told SPACE.com.
Regarding the benefit to Northrop Grumman by the ownership of Scaled Composites, McClain added: “First of all, both Northrop Grumman and Scaled Composites felt that Scaled would benefit from the broader resources that Northrop Grumman can bring. But, in particular, Northrop Grumman recognized the innovative and entrepreneurial qualities of Scaled Composites as a good fit with our company’s efforts to define the future of aeronautics and spaceflight.â€
McClain said that Northrop Grumman values the mode of operation that Scaled Composites has currently.
Author Leonard David
Northrop Grumman’s 100 percent equity plans for Scaled Composites in Mojave, California will not impact work underway in developing the commercial, passenger-carrying SpaceShipTwo.
Dan McClain, Director of Media Relations for Northrop Grumman in Los Angeles, California said that on July 5 Northrop Grumman agreed to increase their ownership of Scaled Composites. The large aerospace firm has had for several years approximately 40 percent of Scaled, now increasing its equity to 100 percent, he advised.
McClain said that the equity transaction was expected to close in August, pending the usual regulatory procedures, which includes Hart-Scott-Rodino approval - a federal antitrust law.
The financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.
McClain emphasized that the equity change will have no impact on development of the SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle. There are to be no differences at all in the on-going work at Scaled with aerospace primes or jobs it does in its commercial programs.
Back in July 2005, Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group of companies and Rutan as president of Scaled Composites, jointly announced their signing of an agreement to form The Spaceship Company - a new aerospace production enterprise to build a fleet of commercial suborbital spaceships and launch aircraft. That new company will own the designs of the new SpaceShipTwo and White Knight 2 launch systems that are now in development at Scaled Composites.
“The partnership between Scaled Composites and the Virgin Group on The Spaceship Company is unchanged by the transaction,†McClain added. “Certainly, Burt will remain at the helm and lead Scaled Composites…and the entire management team will remain. It will continue in its current operating model as a separate entity within Northrop Grumman,†he told SPACE.com.
Regarding the benefit to Northrop Grumman by the ownership of Scaled Composites, McClain added: “First of all, both Northrop Grumman and Scaled Composites felt that Scaled would benefit from the broader resources that Northrop Grumman can bring. But, in particular, Northrop Grumman recognized the innovative and entrepreneurial qualities of Scaled Composites as a good fit with our company’s efforts to define the future of aeronautics and spaceflight.â€
McClain said that Northrop Grumman values the mode of operation that Scaled Composites has currently.
Fractal Design Arc Mini R2, 3800X, Asus B450M-PRO mATX, 2x8GB B-die@3800C16, AMD Vega64, Seasonic 850W Gold, Black Ice Nemesis/Laing DDC/EKWB 240 Loop (VRM>CPU>GPU), Noctua Fans.
Comment