Kaine eyes progress on launch

“It’s always better to have the picture in the mind’s eye when you’re trying to lobby or advocate for something, so this helps,” he said.

Kaine’s brief visit to Wallops was his first time back on the Eastern Shore since his U.S. Senate campaign ended in November.

Wallops was the senator’s fourth stop on the tour scheduled during a week of senatorial recess.

As engine noise roared inside the large integration facility, Kaine listened intently to Antares Senior Operations Manager Mike Brainard as he gave an overview of the rocket and its upcoming test flight.

Unlike previous Orbital space vehicles launched at Wallops, the Antares is the first “liquid venture.”

“What makes it special is its liquid engine that can be shut down if we encounter any problems,” Brainard said.

The liquid oxygen and kerosene contained within the rocket’s engine tanks are needed to push the payload of cargo that weighs over 5,000 kilograms, explained Brainard.

The April 17 test flight of the Antares, titled the “A-ONE” mission, will carry a simulated payload.

A little less than 10 minutes after the slated 5 p.m. liftoff, the payload will separate from the rocket about 158 miles above Earth.

Antares is currently scheduled to conduct 10 missions from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport launch pad complex at Wallops.

In 2008, Orbital was awarded a $1.9 billion contract with NASA for eight cargo missions to the space station.

Kaine, who was serving as Virginia’s governor at that time, was involved in the Orbital recruitment process by state and federal agencies.

“You want to have an economy that’s diversified and we have a very obviously booming technology sector in Virginia — information technology and biotechnology — but there was more we could do in the aviation and aerospace,” said Kaine of the decision to expand Orbital’s operation within the commonwealth.

After taking a look inside Wallops’ integration facility, Kaine took the one-mile drive to Antares’ launch pad.

The test flight mission, entitled “A-ONE,” began its initial stages early Saturday morning when the rocket was rolled out from the facility and erected onto the pad.

The goal of the A-ONE mission is to demonstrate the entire launch system — from roll-out, through placement on the pad and fueling, to launch and delivery of a payload into orbit.

A-ONE is the first of two mission Orbital has scheduled this year under its Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Space Act Agreement with NASA.

With the scheduled Antares launch, more visitors will be making their way to Chincoteague and other towns neighboring Wallops.

The launch and other activities at Wallops not only increase tourism to neighboring areas like Chincoteague, but they also create a new opportunity for young people on the Shore, Kaine said.

“This is now really building up a critical mass and adding to a regional economy a whole new skill set that will be really great for the students here,” he said.

Following the launch, Orbital carry out a full-flight demonstration of Antares around mid-year.

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