AA-2 Stack at SLC-46; Lift and Mate

The test version of Orion attached to the Launch Abort System for the Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) flight test arrives at Space Launch Complex 46 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on May 23, 2019. The flight test article will be hoisted up and moved inside the vertical integration facility for stacking atop the booster. The booster was procured by the U.S. Air Force and manufactured by Northrop Grumman. During AA-2, targeted for July 2, the LAS with Orion will launch on the booster more than six miles in altitude, where Orion’s launch abort system will pull the capsule and its crew away to safety if an emergency occurs during ascent on the Space Launch System rocket. AA-2 is a critical safety test that helps pave the way for Artemis missions near the Moon, and will enable astronauts to set foot on the lunar surface by 2024.