Facility At About 75 Percent Capacity

Space Florida announced Tuesday the completion of a three-year/$1.8 million project to finalize upgrades to the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) Hangar, located near the Space Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center.

Major additions included a foam fire suppression system and critical roof upgrades. The newly-installed Polyurethane Foam Fire Suppression System will now allow fueled aircraft to be stored at the 50,000 sq. ft. hangar.

Current tenants of the RLV include a jet demonstration team and a NASA Constellation contractor. Space Florida is currently in discussions to lease some of the remaining capacity to fueled aircraft clients.

"We are thrilled -- these upgrades allow us to attract new aerospace customers to this first-rate facility," said Mark Bontrager, Space Florida VP of Spaceport Operations.

Currently at 75% capacity, the RLV Hangar has had an interesting history. Built by the State of Florida in the early 1990's to house NASA's X-33 Reusable Launch Vehicle, the hangar became available to other businesses when the RLV program was canceled. The RLV Hangar hosted several aerospace clients in recent years, including Virgin Atlantic and Scaled Composites' Global Flyer.

The Hangar was also a holding site for the recovered remnants of Space Shuttle Columbia.

FMI: www.spaceflorida.gov