Dream Chaser Spacecraft Passes NASA Milestone

Sierra Nevada Corporation’s (SNC) Dream Chaser spacecraft passed a key milestone for NASA’S Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS-2) contract, validating design performance and clearing the way for full spacecraft production. The milestone marks completion of Integration Review 4 (IR4) demonstrating NASA’s confidence in the safety and maturity of Dream Chaser’s design. Many critical parts of the orbital vehicle are already complete, built and being tested, including major structural components, thermal protection system tiles and avionics hardware. With the success of IR4, these components are now being integrated into the orbital vehicle assembly at SNC’s Space Systems facilities in Louisville. SNC and NASA jointly concluded that the Dream Chaser programme was ready to move to full-scale spacecraft manufacturing and testing.

SNC’s Dream Chaser spacecraft is slated to service the International Space Station as early as late 2020.