ABL Space Systems

ABL Space Systems is an American aerospace and launch service provider, based in El Segundo, California, that manufactures deployable launch vehicles and infrastructure for sending commercial small satellites into orbit. The company manufactures its components in the United States.

ABL Space Systems manufactures the RS1, a two-stage orbital expendable launch vehicle, and GS0, a deployable launch pad. Harry O'Hanley is the chief executive officer (CEO) and Dan Piemont is the chief financial officer (CFO) of ABL Space Systems.

History
ABL Space Systems was founded in 2017 by Harry O'Hanley and Dan Piemont, former SpaceX and Morgan Stanley employees. Their RS-1 rocket has two stages. It offers a maximum capacity of 1350 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO).

In 2018, ABL Space Systems signed a lease with Camden County, Georgia, for future operations in Spaceport Camden.

In 2019, the company signed with Spaceport America in New Mexico to locate some ABL testing operations and facilities there. As of October 2022, the company makes no mention of this location on their facility list.

In 2021 ABL leased facilities at the Port of Long Beach formerly occupied by Sea Launch.

As of 2023, ABL is working on a larger rocket to compete for National Security Space Launch contracts.

Testing
In 2019, ABL Space conducted testing of the E2 rocket engine at the company's test facilities at Spaceport America, New Mexico, which "provided the perfect location and support staff for us to test the E2 rocket engine". The test was considered a success.

In early 2020, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) joined with ABL Space Systems to test and develop rocket-propulsion components. In October 2020, the second stage with E2 engine was tested at Edwards Air Force Base.

On 19 January 2022, an anomaly during testing at Mojave Air and Space Port resulted in the destruction of the second stage of the RS1 rocket. On 27 January, the source of the anomaly was publicly identified by ABL's CEO Harry O'Hanley as being one of the second stage's E2 Vacuum engine's turbopumps suffering a hard start, which led to a "substantial fire on the aft end of the vehicle, resulting in a complete failure about 20 seconds later".

After three earlier attempts to launch their RS1 rocket in December 2022, ABL shifted the launch attempt to January 2023. The maiden flight on January 10, 2023, failed.

Pacific Spaceport Complex
The first RS1 flight was planned for 2022 from the Pacific Spaceport Complex on Kodiak Island, but the launch attempt failed with no rocket actually launched. After two additional launch attempt failures (no rockets launched), the first launch occurred on January 10, 2023. The maiden flight also failed and did not reach orbit.

Cape Canaveral
On 1 November 2021, Amazon announced that the first two prototype satellites of the Kuiper constellation, KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2, would be launched using RS1 in the fourth quarter of 2022 from Launch Complex 48 at the Kennedy Space Center. Amazon subsequently shifted these satellites to Vulcan Centaur. Which were then subsequently launched on and Atlas V on October 6, 2023.

SaxaVord Spaceport
On 7 February 2021, Lockheed Martin and the United Kingdom announced a contract with ABL to launch the UK Pathfinder mission (6 CubeSats) in 2022, from the Shetland Space Centre on the island of Unst, Scotland. As of September 2023, the UK Pathfinder launch is scheduled to take place in late 2024.

RS1 rocket
Both stages are powered by ABL's E2 rocket engine, with nine in the first stage, and one in the second stage. They are powered by RP-1 kerosene as propellant and liquid oxygen (LOX) as the oxidizer.

The containerized launch system and rocket can be deployed to and launched from a suitably flat site, the main requirements being access for trucks capable of carrying up to 16 m-long ISO containers (for the RS-1 first stage), and a flat concrete pad 46 m x 15 m.

ABL Space Systems was planning the first orbital launch of its RS1 rocket in 2022. The firm received contracts worth US$44.5 million from the United States Air Force, as well as private funding equaling US$49 million. According to Dan Piemont, the US$44.5 million Air Force contracts include a one-year deal from the tech incubator AFWERX to demonstrate launch technology and an agreement with Space and Missile Systems Center's Space Enterprise Consortium to conduct three demonstrations of a RS1 vehicle variant and deployable ground infrastructure in 2022.

The RS1 is capable of carrying a payload of 1350 kg to low Earth orbit. It is 27 m tall. Launches are planned to be sold for US$12 million per flight.

The maiden flight on January 10, 2023, failed after a fire in the aft cavity damaged key harnessing, causing the engines to shut down 11 seconds into flight. RS1 crashed down near the launch pad, damaging infrastructure at the Pacific Spaceport Complex.

ABL has sold over 70 launches so far.

Previous design
In 2019, RS-1 was planned to have three E1 engines, each producing 42000 lbf of thrust to power the rocket's first stage. A single E2 engine, with 13000 lbf of thrust, was planned for the rocket's second stage. Both engines would use liquid oxygen and RP-1 propellants. The first development build of the vehicle has been completed.