Orion Launch Abort System Funding Halt

That's going to go over well with Congress. Somebody ought to tell Bolden, when you're in a hole to first thing to do is STOP DIGGING! But since I support Constellation, DIG ON CHARLIE!!!

Death by a thousand cuts (or maybe just a few) this is the first step... if they get away with it... for the end of Orion. LM covering the cancellation liability will add insult to injury. Starting to circle the drain it would seem.

This is only the beginning. Obama, Bolden, and Garver simply do not get it. They are moving our human space flight program into third rate status.

NASA isn't doing the cuts. The contractors are. NASA simply reminded the contractors of there liabilities should the Congress authorize the 2011 budget and Constellation be canceled. The contractors simply decided on the actions they needed to take to diligently look after the welfare of their stock holders. Capitalism at work. Congress will understand eventually.

So... what exactly does this mean for the Oreon?

I suppose the lifeboat option doesn't need an escape system to sit in low earth orbit on standby. Though you have to wonder why didn't they just dust off the X-38 that was purpose made for this job.

"So... what exactly does this mean for the Oreon?"

That, unless specific funding is available quickly for Orion continuation, including the LAS, it is going to be very difficult to use it as a crew launch and transfer vehicle without the expense of restarting the LAS project essentially from scratch. More work done towards making the commercial option the only option, for better or for worse.

Yup, as @GREverett says, this is the contractor - they can do anything required to protect themselves, within reason. I suspect you'll see this for many systems and contractors.

And, as @Maxwell says - you don't need the LAS for Orion-Superlite doing a rescue mission.

The X-38 would have been nice, but the Orion route means you've got folks hired right now who know the system, you have a path to BEO tests (flying Orion up with avionics for BEO mission systems tests, using the extra volume in lots of ways, etc). The future is 48 hours away, it seems!

Yes but if you cause LM/Orion to stop work now.. wait for a contract rebid. Wait for that to be approved and through all the "stuff" that has to happen before you start staffing back up you are talking 9-18 months. Contractors can't and won't hold onto the work force for that amount of time. You have killed Orion (the piece they are saying they want to save) implicitly. Perhaps that is the goal however.

You'd suspect the Prime would hold on to the personnel and subs required for Orion-RV, and just drop those required on LAS, though?

Look who is restricting the funds. There could be a subtext going on here. Lockheed may be communicating to NASA that if they want ULA in on the manned systems to LEO business, that they want an inside track. They likely had a number of subsystems they could have restricted. The choice of the OLA would require a quick response from NASA to reverse. Lockheed could then use that as an opening to put demands on NASA for a clarification of what NASA is willing to do for them to get them into the LEO business.

BTW: An Orion life boat variant was scheduled to be one of the US contributions to the ISS, but the funding was cut in 2002. Technically, NASA is just responding to the ISS agreement that we provide a lifeboat, the quickest, cheapest way possible. Sierra Nevada is doing a variant on the X34. So maybe someday there will be an X34 type return vehicle available.

What I have heard though, is that with Orion changing so much (the loss of the LAS in the near term being a good example) that NASA wants a whole new contract for ALL of Orion. And wants to shut down the current contract, and start a new one... but the turn around time on that will be not quick...... it is the government doing it after all.

"You'd suspect the Prime would hold on to the personnel and subs required for Orion-RV?"

Why? If it is stopped for more than a month or two, I wouldn't expect any contractor to hold on to anyone other than key people. Companies aren't like the government giving out money willy-nilly.

This is only the beginning. Obama, Bolden, and Garver simply do not get it. They are moving our human space flight program into third rate status.
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Going from a Shuttle to a retro spam can is what is making us third rate. The program is canceled and thus, no longer needs this system.

How exciting.

a CXP test. It is fully funded and hopeful it will be a success! This is part of the closeout activities.

Movement is happening finally!

Just curious.

Is there any reason that escape system couldn't be used on for a manned Dragon capsule? It would seem like a common sense way to expedite its development..

Charlie isn't the ONLY one digging a hole..OBAMA is TOO....so JSKI you are right...KEEP ON DIGGING!

VOTE THE DEMS OUT!

There are several problems:

1) Different size - Orion is 5m in diameter and Dragon is just over 4m in diameter;

2) Different shape - Orion is an Apollo-style cone whilst Dragon is closer in configuration to the bell-shaped Soyuz RV;

3) SpaceX have already got a launch abort system, a set of high-thrust hypergolic engines mounted on the capsule, rather than solid motors on a 'tower'.

Its designed for a much heavier capsule in a much more extreme abort environment (escaping from an out-of-control but still firing SRB). It's probably too heavy heavy and overkill for Dragon-Falcon 9

This is more than likley due to FY10 and FY11 NASA driven funding cap. LM is given the cap, and they decide what to defer.

Good riddance, what an abomination. The LAS was something like 20 percent of the Orion weight. I would be upset over the cancellation of CxP if it were a viable program, but it's not. It is a Rube Goldberg architecture that doesn't pass the giggle test. Unfortunately, until they fire those in charge of CxP, everything we do will look like Ares I or some variant thereof. Those in charge have no imagination or capabilities.

Keith, that really isnt a difficult question to answer seeing as this article is referring to Lockheed Martin cutting its funding of future LAS Abort testing, i.e. Pad Abort 2. They delivered all of their hardware to NASA for PAd Abort 1 to NASA a long time ago. It is sitting at White Sands ready for NASA to Launch it on Thursday.

@ Possum, you do realize that any crew vehicle whether it be Constellation, Commercial or Unicorns and Leprechauns is going to require a launch abort system? This has been mandated post CAIB. Any crew vehicle must have a way to get the crew away from an exploding launch vehicle. Well, let me rephrase that any American vehicle that actually launches crew into space... so no worries.