A flight-like ground test engine is being developed as part of NASA’s ISTAR (integrated system test of an air-breathing rocket) program. Its goal is to flight-test a self-powered vehicle to more than six Arial the speed of sound by the end of this decade.
The engine is being developed by the Rocket Based Combined Cycle Consortium, which consists of Aerojet (Sacramento, CA), Pratt & Whitney (West Palm Beach, FL) and Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power (Canoga Park, CA). The project is being funded by NASA as part of an effort to make future space transportation safer, more reliable and less expensive than today’s missions.