Space / Safety protocols worked exactly as planned – spaceport boss confirms
Isles MP Alistair Carmichael calls for the findings of any investigation to be shared with the community
THE CHIEF executive of SaxaVord Spaceport says he is “delighted” that all procedures and safety protocols worked as they should have done during a failed “hot fire” test at the space centre in Unst on Monday night.
Dramatic video footage shows how Rocket Factory Augsburg’s RFA One rocket and the entire launch stool were engulfed in flames when aviation fuel caught fire.
No-one was injured in the incident.
The German company was on track to attempt a first orbital launch from UK soil later this year, but this is now being postponed.
Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael meanwhile called on SaxaVord Spaceport and RFA to share the findings of their investigations – once available – to reassure the public that there is a professional safety regime in place at the site.
Photo: Malcolm Younger/Millgaet Media
Strang said that both SaxaVord and RFA had repeatedly insisted that failure would happen and that it was part of the learning process in order to reach space.
He said tests are designed to iron out problems, and added that he was satisfied that the spaceport’s own protocols had worked like “clockwork”.
“For me as the CEO, I am delighted that all the protocols and procedures worked,” Strang told Shetland News on Tuesday.
“The pad performed as it was supposed to. RFA will conduct their investigation into what the problem was; they will fix it and then we will carry on.
“The good news is that all our procedures and protocols – bearing in mind that we are the first licensed spaceport in the UK – worked like clockwork.
“Nobody was hurt, all the reporting mechanisms were in place, and everything was done as it should be.
“As a spaceport operator I can say that this was going to happen and will be more over the years on different pads – and that is exactly why you have more than one launch pad.”
Strang added that it was an accepted fact within the space industry that failures such as Monday’s were inevitable. “That’s why you have all these measures in place,” he said.
He said Elon Musk’s SpaceX business launched successfully 96 times last year, but this was only after three or four earlier attempts had ended in “catastrophic failures”.
Strang added: “The launch pads are sited for safety and there is an exclusion zone, (…) so there is never any danger to human life. And what you do with aviation fuel is, you just let it burn out.
“Aviation fuel burns out quickly. We then call in the fire brigade to check and making sure it is safe for people to go back in.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said they were alerted at 8.38pm on Monday to reports of a fire located within the SaxaVord launchpad.
“Operations control mobilised one fire appliance to the scene, and the fire was extinguished,” the spokesperson said.
“There were no casualties, and crews left the scene after ensuring the area was safe.”
MP Alistair Carmichael, who happened to be in Unst on Monday evening for a public meeting on tunnels, said questions needed to be answered to give the community confidence in the SaxaVord operation.
“We have always known that launching space rockets bring an element of risk, and it is essential for the safety of those involved and the confidence of the community that these risks are professionally and appropriately managed,” the MP said.
“Having seen this incident, we do need to know that the necessary safeguards worked and that that was why there no injuries or worse, and that in the future lessons can be learned from what hopefully is a bump in the road rather than something more significant.”
Rocket Factory Augsburg said it had nothing new to add to the statement it published immediately after the failure. The company is assessing the situation and will provide an update in “due time”, it said.
See also:
No injuries after rocket engine ends up in flames during test at Unst spaceport
