OREANDA-NEWS Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AJRD), recently demonstrated the highest chamber pressure of any United States produced liquid oxygen and kerosene main combustion system. This milestone occurred during a series of successful test firings of the AR1's staged combustion system at NASA's Stennis Space Center.

Preparations for the staged-combustion testing began at Stennis last summer, pushing the limits of the nation's premier large engine development test facility. During this testing, Aerojet Rocketdyne combined the engine's preburner with the main injector in order to validate injector design parameters and performance.

"Staged-combustion testing is a critical step in proving our design for AR1 and reestablishing U.S. preeminence in hydrocarbon space launch propulsion," said Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO and President Eileen Drake. "We have been working diligently on the AR1 program since 2014 and remain on target to deliver a flight-qualified AR1 engine in 2019 as promised. The latest testing validates our flight design and provides high confidence as we move further into AR1 engine manufacturing."

The AR1 engine is being developed as a replacement for Russian-made engines currently used on domestic rockets. AR1 is a 500,000 lbf thrust-class liquid oxygen/kerosene booster engine that incorporates the latest advances in rocket engine technology, materials science and modern manufacturing techniques to deliver an affordable, reliable booster engine quickly.

"AR1 is the lowest risk, lowest cost and fastest path to end U.S. reliance on Russian engines for the launch of America's national security and civil space missions," added Drake.