Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne Liquid Upper Stage for Missile Defense

[bobbymike]

From Aerospace and Defense News

P&W Rocketdyne Awarded $20 M Contract From MDA
Published on ASDNews: May 25, 2010

(Canoga Park, Calif., May 24, 2010) -- Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne received a $20.3 million contract for the first phase to design, develop and test a High-Performance Liquid Upper-Stage propulsion system that will support early intercept capabilities for the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX) company.

"With emerging ballistic missile threats, the MDA needs to develop faster interceptors that can stop enemy missiles early in flight when their countermeasures are less effective," said Bruce Janeski, program manager, Liquid Upper-Stage propulsion system, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne. "We are confident our propulsion system will increase the speed of interceptors by reducing weight and increasing performance."

Under the contract, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne will develop components and conduct risk-reduction tests on a liquid upper-stage propulsion system, which could be integrated into an advanced land-based interceptor to augment the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne will demonstrate the propulsion system's capability by conducting a static hot-fire test of the integrated system in simulated altitude conditions.
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Any guesses what system this is for (I bolded an interesting line)?

 

[sferrin]

Hard to say. Given that they cancelled KEI and the 2-stage version of GBI though, I find it difficult to believe they'd now fund a NEW ABM. Maybe it's for a replacement upper stage for GBI, SM-3 Block-X or the "kicker stage" be tossed around for THAAD.

 

[bobbymike]

The article also says to build a faster missile to intercept ballistic missiles early in their flight, so is this a new system for boost phase interception? It being ground based makes that statement puzzling.