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It is hoped that the development of the system will reduce launch costs and provide enhanced launch services to customers by providing autonomous flight termination capabilities.
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Australian company Gilmour Space has confirmed today that it has entered into a partnership with SENER Aeroespacial, a company within the SENER engineering and technology group, for the development of an Autonomous Flight Termination System (AFTS) for use with the Eris rocket.
According to a company spokesperson, the AFTS is a smart hardware and software unit that autonomously aborts flights in the event that anomalies are detected, and is subject to intensive certification processes.
Currently, SENER Aeroespacial is developing software processing algorithms under the first phase of the project to monitor flight and vehicle parameters and detect deviations from the projected rocket trajectory. If necessary, the company explains that the AFTS unit can terminate the mission.
The companies hope to have the initial protype complete before the inaugural launch of the Eris rocket later in 2022.
If successful, the project will enable systems onboard the rocket to autonomously abort missions rather than relying on costly manual operator intervention. It is expected that these capabilities will increase the versatility of launch vehicles by reducing reliance on traditional ground stations at launch sites as well as efficiency by decreasing mission cost.
SENER utilised its prior expertise in launch vehicles including AVIO’s hybrid navigation NAVIGA capability, which is scheduled to be utilised onboard the upcoming VEGA-C rocket.
"This new contract reinforces our position as a leader in a growing market in Europe, that of medium-cost space systems that offer good performance and high reliability,” Augusto Caramagno, director of Institutional Programs at SENER Aeroespacial, said.
“The AFTS is also joining our portfolio of highly critical onboard systems within the PNT (Positioning, Navigation and Timing) strategic line, where SENER Aeroespacial has considerable experience and has achieved a competitive advantage.”
The partnership between the two companies represents deepening relationships between Australian and international space providers, with Adam Gilmour, chief executive of Gilmour Space, hoping to finalise the collaboration by the launch of the Eris in the second half of the year.
“It’s great to be working with SENER Aeroespacial, an established space company with a strong track record for delivering high-performance systems. Given the progress, we’re confident that we will have a robust AFTS ready for our first Eris rocket launch in the second half of 2022,” Gilmour said.
[Related: ‘Most powerful rocket engine ever developed in Australia’ tested in Queensland]
