EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif -- A Lockheed Martin Titan IV solid-fuel rocket booster was test fired at the Air Force Research Laboratory’s refurbished test stand I-C on Leuhman Ridge. The test firing lasted 140 seconds and generated 1.7 million pounds of thrust. It was the first firing of a Titan IV booster at the facility since 1993.
For over 10 years, Celtech held the USAF IDIQ Contract for Provision, Repair & Support of their test stands worldwide. Our support and supply of the T20C system with ENDAS II, EDACS, and ADAQ and the T21D system with ENDAS and ADAQ continues today. Celtech innovated the T20C to include testing for the F404/414 engines with EDACS. Our companies have successfully integrated modern J85 testing on the M37/T20 test stands many times, at home and abroad. We are an original provider of the T-24/T-33 (air dyno) test equipment, and in current discussions with diverse, international parties interested in modernization. Look for ADAQ in future FEDS installations and refurbishments. In September 2013, we joined the corporate team of Atec, Inc., a respected aeroengine test and support firm since 1953. Vital Link’s affiliation in January 2017 add unmatched hush house, fab, construction and field service capabilities to our team.Our combined resources can handle any aeroengine test and maintenance project. Together, our 125+ engineers are studying our test stands, enclosures and other products for continuous improvement. Celtech test stands are manufactured and repaired to US Military Configuration, while utilizing Technology advances wherever practical.
n 1987, the US Air Force was in a bind, and they were looking for a way out. The previous year, the national security community had suffered two body blows in a row with the shuttle Challenger accident in January and, three months later, the loss of a Titan 34D. The Space Shuttle used the same solid rocket motor technology pioneered by the Titan a generation before to assemble large rocket motors like a wedding cake—one layer on top of another—rather than as a single gigantic piece that would be impossible to build or transport to the launch pad. Both of these incidents, though, were traced back to issues with the solid rocket motors. Clearly there were unresolved problems with the technology that had to be address immediately.