PROTECTING AEROSPACE - Newly-elected officers of the Edwards AFB Community
Alliance, which is working to protect activities at Edwards Air Force Base
from closing or downsizing, admire the XCOR Aerospace EZ-Rocket Monday.
From left, President Tom Wardlaw, Treasurer George Novinger, Dennis Davenport,
vice-president , and Bill Deaver, secretary.
Edwards survival vital to Mojave rocket firms, group learns
Airspace allows flight testing
MOJAVE - XCOR Aerospace and the six other firms developing rocket-powered aircraft would probably not be located at Mojave Airport if facilities at Edwards Air Force Base and the China Lake Naval Air Warfare Center did not exist, members of the Edwards Community Alliance were told Monday.
Meeting in XCOR's hangar at the airport, members of the group dedicated to saving Edwards from the federal Base Realignment and Closing (BRAC) process were briefed by Aleta Jackson, one of the rocket firms' founders.
"We wouldn't be here without Edwards," Jackson said, adding that the restricted airspace established for Edwards and nearby China Lake is indispensable.
"Because they do flight testing at Edwards, we can do flight testing," of the firm's rocket-powered aircraft, Jackson added. That aircraft, the "EZ-Rocket," is classified by the Federal Aviation Administration as a "launch vehicle," rather than an airplane, she explained.
Depend on resources
In addition to the restricted airspace, XCOR also relies on the extensive technical libraries at the Air Force Flight Test Center and the Air Force Propulsion Lab at Edwards, and on the knowledge of retired aerospace engineers living in the area.
Jackson said other rocket firms at Mojave Airport also use facilities at Edwards.
Jackson told Alliance members that XCOR is developing the Xerus launch vehicle which is being designed to take off from Mojave Airport under its own power, enter sub-orbital flight, and return to the airport.
Xerus is designed to carry tourists into space, for experiments that require zero gravity, and to launch small satellites. "It can take off and land several times a day," she said.
Raising money
Prior to Jackson's briefing, Bob Johnstone of The Aerospace Office, which manages the Alliance effort, reminded members that there will be no more funding from the state to protect Edwards and other California bases from well-funded efforts by officials in other states.
"We have to raise our own money," Johnstone said, asking Alliance members to solicit support from local businesses which depend on Edwards for their existence.
Johnstone also noted that XCOR and Bohn Printing of Lancaster were the first Alliance sponsors.
"We need to inform politicians and decision-makers of the need to keep jobs here," Johnstone reiterated.
He also said that local officials at Pt. Mugu and China Lake have agreed to work with the Alliance jointly to protect military bases in the region from being closed or down-sized.
Alliance members elected a board of directors that includes Tom Wardlaw of Rosamond as president, Dennis Davenport of Lancaster as Vice-President, Bill Deaver of Mojave as secretary, and George Novinger of Tehachapi as treasurer.
For information on supporting efforts to keep defense and aerospace
jobs at Edwards and China Lake, call 661.723.6103.
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