Author Topic: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014  (Read 105264 times)

Online Galactic Penguin SST

Well it looks like the alternative theories have been dumped as it seems that the investigation committee did found a defect in the pipelines welding.....

The official report is due by early June, and it seems that authorization is about to come to restart preparations for the next Proton launches.  ::)
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Online Galactic Penguin SST

Hmm today the investigation committee reports that the failure "most likely" involves the destruction of the bearing mounting on the 3rd stage vernier engine's turbopump.

I wonder if that could be caused by a fuel line depressurization, or the two are actually in conflict with each other?  ::)
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Offline Antares

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #162 on: 05/29/2014 01:18 pm »
If that bearing is cooled or lubricated with fuel, it could be.
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Offline savuporo

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #163 on: 05/29/2014 07:05 pm »
It seems this comes up once every time Proton cartwheels

http://rt.com/news/162228-proton-rocket-failure-sabotage/
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Offline Mader Levap

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #164 on: 05/29/2014 08:12 pm »
It is just good old Soviet tradition. Nothing ever is their own fault.
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Online Galactic Penguin SST

Now they are blaming the destruction of the bearing bracket..... http://russian.rt.com/article/34227
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Online Galactic Penguin SST

Now they are blaming the destruction of the bearing bracket..... http://russian.rt.com/article/34227

Well this was officially announced today as the failure reason by the investigation committee today: http://ria.ru/technology/20140611/1011586996.html

...but interestingly enough one active member at Novosti Kosmonavtiki says that usually such "conclusions" actually does not follow the real reason of the failures, citing many previous Proton and Soyuz failures in the past and even that of Soyuz-1 (!). Someone might try to comment on this.....  ::)
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Offline docmordrid

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #167 on: 06/13/2014 07:16 am »
Now it sounds like just the bearing.

http://en.itar-tass.com/non-political/735724

Quote
MOSCOW, June 11. /ITAR-TASS/. The May 16 crash of the Proton space rocket was due to a failed bearing in the steering engine’s turbo pump, the chief of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Oleg Ostapenko, told ITAR-TASS.
>
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Offline Prober

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #168 on: 06/16/2014 05:35 pm »
...but interestingly enough one active member at Novosti Kosmonavtiki says that usually such "conclusions" actually does not follow the real reason of the failures, citing many previous Proton and Soyuz failures in the past and even that of Soyuz-1 (!). Someone might try to comment on this.....  ::)

Years later the root cause was re-established as spontaneous decomposition of the HTP.

now this has to be an interesting story.
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Offline Star One

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Re: FAILURE: Proton-M/Briz-M – Ekspress-AM4R – May 15, 2014
« Reply #169 on: 06/18/2014 05:14 pm »
Russian Industry Official Says Proton Should Return to Flight in September.

Quote
Yuri Prokhorov, director-general of RSCC, whose fleet growth has been hampered by multiple Proton and in-orbit satellite failures in the past five years, said he remains confident that Proton will launch three RSCC satellites on three separate missions before the end of the year.

In a June 18 interview here, Prokhorov said Moscow-based RSCC has been told that Proton would return to flight in September with the launch of a Russian government Luch data-relay satellite. Launches for state-owned RSCC are also considered as part of Russia’s government launch program, even if RSCC is operated as a commercial company.

http://www.spacenews.com/article/launch-report/40950russian-industry-official-says-proton-should-return-to-flight-in

Online Chris Bergin

INTERNATIONAL LAUNCH SERVICES (ILS) FAILURE REVIEW OVERSIGHT BOARD (FROB) CONCLUDES EXPRESS AM4R PROTON LAUNCH ANOMALY INVESTIGATON
Successful Proton Return to Flight Mission for Russian Federal Government Launched on September 28

 

September 29, 2014- The ILS Failure Review Oversight Board (FROB) has concluded its work, after a detailed review of the findings, conclusions and identified corrective action plans from the Russian State Inter-agency Commission (IAC) and Khrunichev (KhSC) investigations into the probable cause of the May 16 failure of the Russian Federal Proton mission carrying the Express AM4R satellite.

 

The members of the FROB reviewed the initial assessment provided by the IAC along with the additional testing and investigations that the IAC directed to be performed by Khrunichev and their subsidiaries.  Based on the data presented, it was agreed by the FROB that the probable cause of the failure was the loss of structural integrity of a bolted interface that attaches the Stage III steering engine turbopump to the main engine structural frame.  The loss of integrity led to an excessive steering engine turbo pump vibration environment that damaged a fuel inlet line to the oxidizer gas generator, resulting in a fuel leak. The loss of fuel led to the premature shutdown of the turbopump and loss of stage control authority and ultimately loss of mission approximately 545 seconds into the flight.  Additionally, the FROB concurs that the identified corrective action plan will adequately address the identified probable cause and contributors to the failure.

 

“We thank all of the FROB participants—our customers, insurance underwriters, technical experts and all others--for their diligent work and generous time; their continued support is sincerely appreciated,” said ILS Chief Technical Officer and Vice President of Programs and Operations, John Palmι.

 

The successful Proton return to flight mission for the Russian Federal Government occurred on September 28, 2014; all of the required corrective actions were incorporated for this mission. The scheduling of the remainder of the ILS Proton manifest for 2014 is currently being determined.

 

About ILS and Khrunichev
ILS is a leader in providing launch services for global satellite operators and offers a complete array of services and support, from contract signing through mission management and on-orbit delivery.  ILS has exclusive rights to market the Proton vehicle to commercial satellite operators worldwide and is a U.S. company headquartered in Reston, VA., near Washington, D.C.  For more information, visit www.ilslaunch.com.

Khrunichev, which holds the majority interest in ILS, is one of the cornerstones of the Russian space industry. Khrunichev manufactures the Proton system and is developing the Angara launch system. The Proton launches from facilities at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, and has a heritage of more than 398 missions since 1965. Khrunichev includes, among its branches, a number of key manufacturers of launch vehicle and spacecraft components in Moscow and in other cities of the Russian Federation.  For more information, visit www.khrunichev.com.
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Online Galactic Penguin SST

Note that the conclusions contradict with the "bearing failure" quoted by Roscosmos in June as being the ultimate cause.....

....but aligns with what was rumored several days after the launch.  ::)
Astronomy & spaceflight geek penguin. In a relationship w/ Space Shuttle Discovery. Current Priority: Chasing the Chinese Spaceflight Wonder Egg & A Certain Chinese Mars Rover

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