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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

Cyclones to Conquer Space

13 November, 2012 - 00:00

Ukrainian launch vehicles will be used for launching commercial communication satellites from a Brazilian launch site.

Lack of its own space launch sites makes Ukraine look seriously at practical cooperation not only with the close CIS neighbors such as Russia and Kazakhstan but also with quite faraway ones. Vasyl Hureyev, Ukrainian Minister of Industrial Policy, commenting on the results of the recent visit of a Ukrainian delegation to Brazil said that using Ukrainian launch vehicles to launch commercial communication satellites from Brazilian launching sites will cost 30% less than that from America’s Cape Canaveral first of all because they are situated closer to the equator.

According to the Minister, Ukrainian launch vehicles are quite popular today – they are economical and have no analogues in the world. Thus, Brazil is priority direction for developing our external relations, Hureyev stressed.

UNIAN reports that Brazil has already received Ukrainian proposals on several commercial projects. Moreover, a number of working groups are expected to visit Ukraine in the immediate future to familiarized themselves with the industrial potential of Ukrainian enterprises.

On the other hand, Valery Komarov, First Deputy Director General of the Ukrainian National Space Agency stated in an interview with The Day that Brazil is one of few countries today that are quite interested in broadening space activities. The fact that the country allocates for it over $200 million annually speaks volumes. Nevertheless, to Komarov’s mind, in order for the space sectors of both countries to develop properly one more foreign partner ready to invest $150 million in the commercial project of launching communications satellites is needed. An Italian aircraft firm is now considered to be such a potential partner.

Valery Komarov also pointed out that the Brazilian launch site surpasses Russian and Kazakh ones in many aspects. In addition, fields for the utilization of used rocket parts are situated in mid-ocean. An agreement on building a place for Ukrainian Cyclones on the territory of the Brazilian launch site was also reached during the visit.

Archival photo, The Day:

Ukraine’s Cyclone rockets will soon be launched carrying up to four ton commercial payloads

 

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