Front Row (L to R): Marty Kress (VCSI / NSSTC), Tom Baumbach (Dynetics President.) Back Row (L to R): Mike Graves (Dynetics Project Manager), David Freeman (VCSI), Kim Webb (VCSI), Charlotte Talley (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Greg Pruitt (VCSI), and Michael Stebbins (Dynetics Legal Counsel). Photographer: Stephanie Fenton/Dynetics (click photo to enlarge)

The new spacecraft will be called FASTSAT-HSV, short for the Fast Affordable Science and Technology Satellite – Huntsville. VCSI and MSFC have a flight opportunity agreement in place with the Department of Defense Space Test Program to develop and launch a spacecraft bus with five payloads, currently scheduled for December 2009. VCSI and MSFC also have a cooperative agreement in place that enables collaborative projects between the two organizations.

In exchange for its investment, Dynetics will receive from VCSI future contract rights for the production of FASTSAT-HSV. The first flight of this standardized bus will be on a Minotaur IV launch vehicle from the Kodiak Launch Complex in Alaska. The FASTSAT-HSV bus is also compatible with other launch vehicles.

Dr. Marc Bendickson, Dynetics CEO and Chairman of the Board said, “This investment will firmly establish Huntsville as a central contributor in the burgeoning market for small satellites, which are so vital to the future science, technology, and operational requirements of key federal organizations. This initiative is a great example of the type of leverage and growth that VCSI, NASA MSFC, and Redstone Arsenal can mean for Madison County.”

In addition to overseeing the project and securing the external investment, VCSI will continue to market the FASTSAT-HSV bus to other potential Government customers. In parallel, VCSI hopes to expand the payload development and flight opportunity market in the Huntsville region and to capitalize on local assets to meet key science and technology requirements for NASA, DoD, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other key federal agencies.