Dream Chaser shipped to NASA Dryden for glide tests

SNC Dream Chaser Post Flight

Sierra Nevada has shipped the Dream Chaser orbital spacecraft to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center near Palmdale, California, for glide tests.

The Dream Chaser departed Sierra Nevada's factory near Denver, Colorado by truck, headed for NASA's Dryden centre, which is co-located with flight test facilities at Edwards AFB.

The spacecraft will be reassembled, then undergo tests including suitability for towing, ground resonance and captive-carry tests slung beneath a helicopter, leading up to a series of autonomous glide tests.

For the glide tests, the spacecraft will be brought to various altitudes by a Sikorsky CH-53 and released to glide back to the runway on its own.

Read more at: http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/dream-chaser-shipped-to-nasa-dryden-for-glide-tests-385798/