Boeing's Reusable, Unmanned X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle Begins Second Flight

Building upon the inaugural mission from April to December 2010, this second flight will demonstrate that the vehicle is capable of multiple missions and can provide affordable access to space. A second vehicle, OTV-2, broke records in June 2012 when it completed a 469-day mission. Photo credit: Photo courtesy of ULA.

Boeing has successfully returned an unmanned U.S. Air Force X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle to orbit, continuing to demonstrate how the system provides responsive, reusable access to space. An Atlas V rocket launched OTV-1, the first of two vehicles in the program, into a low Earth orbit at 1:03 p.m. Eastern time from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 41.

The X-37B, which combines the best of aircraft and spacecraft design in an unmanned test platform, is testing reusable vehicle technologies dealing with space experimentation, risk reduction and concept-of-operations development.

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