Commercial Crew Access Tower Groundbreaking Set For Feb. 20
By Space Coast Daily // February 16, 2015
at Space Launch Complex 41
ABOVE VIDEO: Astronaut Jeanette Epps details the technology, innovation and excitement on the horizon for American space exploration as NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and its partners build toward flights from American soil on spacecraft made in the United States.
BREVARD COUNTY • CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, FLORIDA – Boeing and United Launch Alliance (ULA) will mark the start of construction of the Commercial Crew access tower at Space Launch Complex 41(SLC-41) on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida at 2:30 p.m. EST Friday, Feb. 20.
The new crew access tower at SLC-41 will reach 200 feet in height and include an elevator, as well as means for quick evacuation from the structure in the event of an emergency.
SLC-41 is one of the most active launch complexes on the Space Coast, so construction of this tower is scheduled to take place between launches, with segments of the structure being built off-site then assembled at the pad.
Under a Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contract with NASA, Boeing’s Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 spacecraft, currently in development, will be certified by NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to fly crews to and from the International Space Station.
The spacecraft will launch on a ULA Atlas V rocket from SLC-41.
