Alliant Techsystems: Аэрокосмическая и оборонная корпорация (1990–2015)

American aerospace, defense, and arms firm (1990–2015)

Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK) was an American aerospace, defense, and sporting arms firm headquartered in Arlington County, Virginia, in the United States. The company operated in 22 states, Puerto Rico, and internationally. ATK revenue in fiscal year 2014 was about US$4.78 billion. On April 29, 2014, ATK announced that it would spin off its Sporting Group and merge its Aerospace and Defense Groups with Orbital Sciences Corporation. The spinoff of the Sporting Group to create Vista Outdoor and the merger leading to the creation of Orbital ATK were completed on February 9, 2015. The companies began operations as separate entities on February 20, 2015. Orbital ATK was bought by Northrop Grumman in 2018.

ATK produces composite stringers and frames for the Airbus A350 XWB 1000 variant at its facility in Clearfield, Utah. As of 2014, ATK has delivered more than 10,000 components to Airbus.

ATK participated in a consortium to develop a new engine nozzle for the Boeing 787 designed to make its operation more environmentally friendly. The nozzle was made from oxide oxide ceramic matrix composite (CMC) and tested on the 787 ecoDemonstrator. Boeing's tests show that the nozzle is more heat resistant than previous models and lighter, allowing for potential gains in fuel efficiency. This was the largest part ever made from CMC.

The Orion Multi Purpose Crew Vehicle is a spacecraft intended to carry a crew of up to four astronauts to destinations beyond low Earth orbit. Currently under development by NASA, for launch on the Space Launch System, Orion will facilitate human exploration of the Moon, asteroids and Mars. ATK developed the launch abort motor that sits on top of the Orion capsule. This device would pull the capsule and its crew up and away from the rocket in the event of major fault on the launch pad or during ascent. ATK also developed numerous composite parts that provide heat protection for Orion.

ATK worked with Northrop Grumman to produce the backplane support frame (BSF) for the James Webb Space Telescope. The BSF, center section, and wings form what is called the primary mirror backplane support system (PMBSS). The BSF is the primary load bearing structure during launch and the PMBSS holds the telescope's main instruments, including its mirrors. The BSF was designed and manufactured at ATK's facilities in Magna, Utah. ATK designed and fabricated more than 10,000 parts for the PMBSS. PMBSS is made primarily of lightweight graphite, but numerous other materials including invar, titanium, and other composite materials were used.

ATK produces Graphite Epoxy Motors (GEM) and largest composite fairings for the Delta II rocket as a subcontractor for the United Launch Alliance. As of June 2014, ATK has produced 987 solid rocket boosters for Delta II missions. These strap on boosters, known as GEM 40s, add 434,000 pounds to the Delta II's maximum thrust. The GEM 40s can be used in groups of three, four, and nine depending on the weight of the payload. The composite structures supplied by ATK increase performance by reducing weight. In addition to composite booster cases for the GEM 40s, ATK produces a 10 foot wide composite payload fairing that covers and protects satellites during launch. ATK also produces the titanium diaphragm propellant tanks and pressurant tank for each Delta II vehicle.

ATK produces Graphite Epoxy Motors and numerous other components for the Delta IV rocket. For example, for the Delta IV that carried the Wideband Global SATCOM satellite (WGS 6) into orbit for the U. S. Air Force, ATK supplied the interstage connector that linked the Common Booster Core and the cryogenic second stage, a centerbody that connects the liquid oxygen tank to liquid hydrogen tanks, a thermal shield for the RS 68 engine, the composite payload fairing, and numerous pieces of hardware for securing the payload.

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 (OCO 2) is an American environmental science satellite. The spacecraft is used to study carbon dioxide concentrations and distributions in the atmosphere. ATK produced the OCO 2's Variable Conductance Heat Pipes, an important part of its thermal control system, solar arrays, and solar array substrates. The mission's objective is to place a stationary lander equipped with a seismometer and heat flow probe on the surface of Mars to study its early geological evolution. This would bring new understanding of the solar system's terrestrial planets. ATK was awarded a contract to provide its UltraFlex solar arrays for the mission. ATK claims that UltraFlex will provide better performance than typical solar arrays used on spacecraft while accommodating ambitious requirements for low mass and small size.

ATK entered the competition to replace the Russian made rocket engine on the Atlas V rocket in September 2014. The Atlas V is used to launch most U. S. military satellites. ATK entered the competition in response to a request for proposals from the Air Force Space and Missile Defense Center issued in 2013 for the RD 180 rocket engine. ATK already supplies rocket engines used in heavier version of the Atlas V. ATK says that solid rocket motors are more reliable and deliver more thrust. ATK said, "Solid rocket motors are optimal for first stage performance as they provide high lift off thrust, allowing for more payload margin. They also require less ground and launch infrastructure, resulting in fewer launch scrubs." The RD 180 engines use kerosene for fuel. The request from the Air Force occurred due to concerns about whether the RD 180 would be available in the future due to increasing tensions with Russia.

The Graphite Epoxy Motor (GEM) is a solid rocket motor produced by ATK using epoxy composite casing. GEMs are used as boosters for the Delta II, Delta III, and Delta IV launch vehicles. The use of composite materials allows for booster casings several times lighter than the steel casings of the Castor 4 solid rocket motors they replaced. The first flight of a GEM occurred in 1990 on a Delta II 7925.

In 2012, ATK was selected by the United States Army to continue operating and maintaining the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant (LCAAP) for an additional seven to ten years. The LCAAP is a federally owned facility in Independence, Missouri. It was built by Remington Arms in 1941 to manufacture and test small caliber ammunition for the army. As of July 2007, the plant produced about 1.5 billion rounds of ammunition per year. The LCAAP still tests ammunition and is the largest producer of small arms ammunition for the U. S. military. ATK has operated the LCAAP since April 2001. The United States Army and ATK opened a renovated ammunition production facility at the LCAAP in December 2014. The renovations improved efficiency and quality control. The Army and ATK invested $11 million to modernize "Building 65" for the production of 20 millimeter ammunition. These large caliber rounds are usually fired from automatic cannons mounted on ground vehicles and aircraft. Building 65 housed 20 millimeter round production until 1997, when it was moved to Building 3. About 50 people are employed on this line.

The AGM 88E Advanced Anti Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) is an upgrade to the AGM 88 High speed Anti Radiation Missile (HARM). The AARGM is the result of cooperation between the United States and Italy. It is produced by ATK. In September 2013, ATK delivered the 100th AARGM to the U. S. Navy. It will be initially integrated onto the FA 18C/D, FA 18E/F, EA 18G, and Tornado ECR aircraft and later on the F 35. The AGM 88E development program was proceeded on schedule and did not exceed its budget. In August 2014, the United States Navy awarded a full rate production contract to ATK to produce to AARGM. Under this contract ATK will also provide captive air training missiles for both the United States and Italy. This is the third contract for the AARGM won by ATK and it is worth $96.2 million.

The AN/AAR 47 Missile Approach Warning System (MWS) is used on slow moving aircraft such as helicopters and military transport aircraft to notify the pilot of threats and to trigger the aircraft's countermeasures systems. Its main users are the U. S. Army, Navy and Air Force, but is also operated by other countries. Originally developed by Loral Space & Communications, it has been solely a product of ATK since 2002. The AN/AAR 47 passively detects missiles by their infrared signature, and uses algorithms to differentiate between incoming missiles and false alarms. Newer versions also have laser warning sensors and are capable of detecting a wider range of threats. After processing the nature of the threat, the system gives the pilot an audio and visual warning, and tells the direction of the incoming threat. It also sends a signal to the aircraft's infrared countermeasures system, which can then for example deploy flares. The development of the original AN/AAR 47(V)1 began in 1983 by Loral. ATK became a second production source in the mid 90s and eventually became the primary contractor. In 1998 ATK began production of the improved AN/AAR 47(V)2, which added laser warning functionality.

The Precision Guidance Kit (PGK) is a United States Army program to develop a precision guidance system for existing 155 mm artillery shells. The prime contractor is Alliant Techsystems and the project team includes Interstate Electronics Corporation. In operation the PGK will screw into the nose of the projectile much like the existing fuze. However, as well as the fuzing function it will provide a GPS guidance package and control surfaces to correct the flight of the shell. This is analogous to the addition of a Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) tail kit to a dumb iron bomb, creating a precision guided munition. Production started in 2009.

The M242 Bushmaster is a 25 mm (25×137mm) chain fed autocannon. It is used extensively by the United States and NATO forces in ground combat vehicles and watercraft. Originally, the weapon was designed and manufactured by McDonnell Douglas. It is an externally powered, chain driven, single barrel weapon which may be fired in semi automatic, burst, or automatic modes. It is fed by a metallic link belt and has dual feed capability. The term "chain gun" derives from the use of a roller chain that drives the bolt back and forth. The gun can destroy lightly armored vehicles and aerial targets, such as helicopters and slow flying aircraft. It can also suppress enemy positions such as exposed troops, dug in positions, and occupied built up areas. The standard rate of fire is 200 rounds per minute. The weapon has an effective range of , depending on the type of ammunition used. The Mk44 Bushmaster II is a 30 mm chain gun also manufactured by ATK. It is a derivative of the 25 mm M242 referenced above and uses 70% of the same parts as the M242. The Mk 44 Bushmaster II is the standard primary armament of the Bionix II AFV currently in service with the Singapore Army, the KTO Rosomak in Polish service as well as that of the CV90 AFVs in Finnish, Norwegian and Swiss service. Some United States Navy vessels, such as the new San Antonio class amphibious transport dock are armed with the Bushmaster II for surface threat defense. The XM813 Bushmaster, also produced by ATK Defense, is based on the Mk44 and is offered as an upgrade for M1126 Stryker and M2 Bradley. Improvements include a one inch longer barrel, integral mount to increase first round hit probability by up to 10 percent, and dual recoil system to enhance accuracy and cope with future hotter propellants. It can have a next round select, linkless feed system. The 30 mm chain gun can fire Mk310 Programmable Air Burst Munition rounds to attack targets in defilade. The United States Army Research, Development and Engineering Command helped enhance the XM813 mainly for safety and turret integration. By changing five parts, the gun caliber can be increased to 40 mm. As of November 2013, the XM813 was being tested at Aberdeen Proving Ground.