It is planned to build a special vessel with launcher for
launching satellites using Atlas, Titan and Delta rockets
(within the scope of the SDI program). The prime
contractor is the British firm of CSI North Venture.
Construction will begin in 1988 at the Harland & Wolff
yard in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The vessel's displacement
is 500,000 tons and she is over 400 m long. When
rockets are launched the vessel is fixed using bow and
stern anchors or hydraulic checking devices, or by filling
ballast tanks and grounding (the specific method has not
yet been chosen). It is planned to launch rockets from
coastal waters of islands situated near the equator. The
principal users of the vessel will be the American firms
McDonnell Douglas, Martin Marietta and General Electric.