Development and flight testing of a rocket powered UAV as pathfinder for a reusable sounding rocket.

Paper number

IAC-18,D2,6,6,x45071

Author

Mr. Jeroen Wink, The Netherlands, Dawn Aerospace

Coauthor

Mr. Tobias Knop, The Netherlands, Dawn Aerospace

Coauthor

Mr. Robert Werner, The Netherlands, Dawn Aerospace

Coauthor

Mr. Stefan Powell, New Zealand, Dawn Aerospace

Coauthor

Mr. James Powell, New Zealand, Dawn Aerospace

Year

2018

Abstract

Dawn Aerospace is developing a winged, reusable, liquid-rocket-powered UAV with the goal of serving sounding rocket mission scenarios more responsively and more cost effective than traditional expendable, multi-stage solid rocket systems. This goal is achieved by employing a UAV operations model in combination with a uniquely designed fixed wing vehicle. The vehicle features a semi- and fully autonomous guidance system, and is equipped with a bi-propellant rocket propulsion unit allowing it to employ trajectories unattainable by traditional fixed-wing UAV as well as traditional sounding rocket systems.
 
Technological and operational aspects in this new vehicle class are explored through a pathfinder project, which comprises of an experimental airframe carrying all subsystems such as avionics, reusable liquid rocket propulsion, propellant management, and communication. The pathfinder vehicle consists of a composite airframe that equiped with a customized avionics suite that allows for full autonomous flight operations and is propelled by a reusable liquid rocket engine with a nominal sea-level thrust of 120N.  A flight test campaign has been carried out in 2018 to characterize all relevant technical and operational metrics on pathfinder level.

The paper outlines the design of the pathfinder vehicle as well as the first results of the rocket powered UAV flight test campaign and discusses these results in light of overall flight performance as well as cost reduction in comparison to traditional expendable sounding rocket systems.

Abstract document

IAC-18,D2,6,6,x45071.brief.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-18,D2,6,6,x45071.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.