The Air Force’s program to provide Initial Flight Screening in one location—a training site at Pueblo, Colo., operated by Doss Aviation—is continuing to gain ground, with the opening of its renovated 200,000 square-foot main training facility. IFS operations have been underway, mainly in leased quarters, since mid-October. USAF expects to have IFS at full capacity within the next 15-18 months.
NASA, SpaceX, and United Launch Alliance are all preparing to launch their next-gen rockets from Florida’s Space Coast, two of them before the year is out. One is expected to liberate the U.S. launch enterprise from its reliance on Russian-made RD-180 engines, while all three rockets could eventually carry astronaut crews.