NASA postpones first Orion launch due to funding and technical concerns

William Atkins
Tuesday, 12 August 2008 19:06

Science - Space

On Monday, August 11, 2008, NASA announced it will delay the first manned launch of its Orion spacecraft by one year as part of its next-generation Project Constellation.


Previously, NASA was gearing itself for a launch date of September 2013 for its first manned Orion spacecraft. However, at the Monday teleconference it was announced that due to funding constraints the space agency will be forwarding that important date by one year.

NASA program manager Jeffrey M. Hanley stated, "As we looked at the plan we had for September 2013 against the available dollars, it became clear to us that we needed to adjust our schedules.” [CNN: "NASA: Space shuttle replacement won't fly until 2014"]

Hanley added, “September 2014 is when we are saying we will launch the first crew on the Orion.” [CNN]

According to the Space.com article “NASA: Shuttle Successor to Fly no Earlier Than 2014,” Hanley said, "This new plan, September 2014, aligns our schedule to what we forecast will be the available resources. We are slowing down the work to match and stay under our available funding, and to do that we had to go to a later date."

Concerned with costs and the complexity of his next-generation of manned spaceflight, Hanley stated, "It's the unknown unknowns that we have to hedge against. Having some number of months of schedule flexibility to meet our commitment, in addition to having some number of months of cost -- dollars -- flexibility, is key to keeping ourselves in a healthy posture." [CNN]

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