Rostec unveils NK-3 engine for ultralight rocket

(SpaceEnergy) Russian state industrial corporation Rostec has unveiled the NK-3 liquid rocket engine being developed for the first and second stages of the ultralight Voronezh launch vehicle.

The engine is being developed by United Engine Corporation’s Kuznetsov enterprise in Samara, Russia. Rostec gives the NK-3 a thrust of 4.5 tonnes and says it is intended to power both stages of the new small launch vehicle.

Some first-stage engines and the second-stage engine will incorporate thrust-vector control to enable trajectory correction during flight.

Rostec announced the NK-3’s first public demonstration for the Technoprom forum in Novosibirsk, Russia. The development targets launch services for small satellites and forms part of the Voronezh ultralight launch-vehicle programme.