AEDC team tests Minuteman rocket motor in J-6

A Minuteman III Stage 3 motor undergoes simulated altitude testing in AEDC’s J-6 Large Rocket Test Facility. It was the second of two Production Quality Assurance (PQA) Minuteman rocket motors scheduled for testing in fiscal year 2011. These tests support Hill AFB and the Minuteman Solid Rocket Motor Warm Line (SRMWL) program. The SRMWL program is intended to sustain and maintain the unique manufacturing and engineering infrastructure necessary to preserve the Minuteman III solid rocket motor production capability. The customer will compare the motors performance parameters to the results of previous Production Quality Assurance (PQA) static tests and verify that the motors meet the requirements in the Prime Item Fabrication Specification (PIFS). (Photo by Rick Goodfriend)

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AEDC team tests Minuteman rocket motor in J-6

From left to right, Brad Wichtoski and Scott Gibbons with Northrop Grumman, conduct an inspection of a Minuteman III Stage 3 motor before it undergoes simulated altitude testing in AEDC’s J-6 Large Rocket Test Facility. (Photo by Rick Goodfriend)

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AEDC team tests Minuteman rocket motor in J-6

Published Sept. 23, 2011
By Philip Lorenz III
AEDC/PA

Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn. -- A Minuteman III Stage 3 motor undergoes simulated altitude testing in AEDC's J-6 Large Rocket Test Facility. It was the second of two Production Quality Assurance (PQA) Minuteman rocket motors scheduled for testing in fiscal year 2011. These tests support Hill AFB and the Minuteman Solid Rocket Motor Warm Line (SRMWL) program. The SRMWL program is intended to sustain and maintain the unique manufacturing and engineering infrastructure necessary to preserve the Minuteman III solid rocket motor production capability. The customer will compare the motors performance parameters to the results of previous Production Quality Assurance (PQA) static tests and verify that the motors meet the requirements in the Prime Item Fabrication Specification (PIFS).