New NASA Safety System Enables Rocket Lab Launch From Wallops

Arevolutionary flight safety system enabled a new era of space transportation with the successful flight of Rocket Lab USA’s Electron rocket Jan. 24, from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility

This mission, the first Electron launch from the United States, was enabled by the NASAAutonomous Flight Termination Unit (NAFTU). Internal Research and Development, or IRAD, funding helped develop this critical flight safety technology

“In taking NAFTU across the finish line, NASA has delivered an autonomous flight termination system like no other in operation today, filling a critical gap in modernizing our nation’s launch ranges,” said David L. Pierce, Wallops Flight Facility director.

“We’re proud to have made this and future U.S. Rocket Lab Electron launches possible with our game-changing flight safety technology.”

While other, proprietary autonomous flight termina- tion systems are in use today, NAFTU is different in that it was designed to be used by any launch provider at all U.S. launch ranges to ensure public safety during launch operations. To date, 18 companies have requested the NAFTU software through NASA’s technology transfer process Rocket Lab was among the first applicants for the software, enabling their launch from Wallops.

Wallops, in collaboration with NASAHeadquarters, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the U.S Air Force and Space Force, as well as the FederalAviation Administration, began development of NAFTU in 2020, when the program became fully funded. Provisional certification of the unit was granted for Rocket Lab’s first U.S. Electron mission and full certification is expected by Jan. 31, 2023.