Draft:Integrate-Transfer-Launch Complex
.jpg?lang=en) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Cape Canaveral Space Force Station | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coordinates | 28°32′54.7″N 80°35′24″W / 28.548528°N 80.59000°W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (EST) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
• Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short name | ITL | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Established | 1961 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | United States Space Force (owner) SLC-40: SpaceX (tenant) SLC-41: United Launch Alliance (tenant) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total launches | 423 (36 Titan IIIC, 7 Titan IIIE, 8 Titan 34D, 4 Commercial Titan III, 27 Titan IV, 84 Atlas V, 254 Falcon 9, 2 Vulcan Centaur) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Launch pad(s) | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Orbital inclination range | 28°–62° | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Integrate-Transfer-Launch Complex (ITL) is a rocket launch site located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.[1] Situated on the northern end of the Banana River, the complex and its various components were originally constructed by the United States Air Force for the Titan III program, and was later modified for use by the Titan IV. The ITL's design is similar to that of Launch Complex 39 at the neighboring Kennedy Space Center, where it consists of two launch pads at Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) and Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) as well as a Vertical Integration Building (VIB), a Solid Motor Assembly Building (SMAB), and a Solid Motor Assembly Readiness Facility (SMARF), all connected by rail.
Following the retirement of the Titan family in 2005, the Air Force and the United States Space Force have divided the ITL between two private spaceflight companies in the processing and launch of their rockets. SpaceX currently leases SLC-40 in the integration and launch of their reusable Falcon 9, and additionally uses the SMAB to encapsulate any of their payloads.[2] Meanwhile, SLC-41 has been used by the Boeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture United Launch Alliance (ULA) to launch the Atlas V and Vulcan Centaur.[3] For the assembly of these rockets, the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) was constructed for both vehicles, and the SMARF was renamed to the Vertical Integration Facility-C (VIF-C) for Vulcan.
Early on, a third launch pad was planned to be constructed at the ITL, to be designated Launch Complex 42 (LC-42). However, the envisioned location west of the facility led to proximity issues with Launch Complex 39A, which resulted in LC-42 never being built.
History
[edit]Background and construction (1961–1964)
[edit]During the late 1950s, the United States Air Force began to explore replacing their first two ICBMs, General Dynamics' SM-65 Atlas and the Glenn L. Martin Company's HGM-25A Titan I. Although the two have been made serviceable enough to warrant deployment in various bases across the country, they both suffered greatly from using RP-1 and liquid oxygen as fuel. As the liquid oxygen was a cryogenic propellant, both the Atlas and Titan were forced to load their fuel immediately between initial activation and launch, massively lengthening readiness times. What resulted was the development of the LGM-25C Titan II by Martin Marietta, which replaced the RP-1 and LOX with Aerozine 50 and dinitrogen tetroxide, hypergolic propellant that could be stored for long periods of time and eliminated the need for an ignition fluid.
The Titan II was designated as the new primary ICBM in the Air Force's arsenal during the 1960s, being deployed into numerous silos across the United States. However, this period did not last; the simultaneously developed LGM-30 Minuteman quickly won the Air Force and Kennedy administration's favor in part thanks to its solid fuel compared to the Titan II's toxic hypergols.[4] Although it was not officially retired due to its large size and throw weight, the Titan II was nonetheless demoted to a secondary role and led to a large scale reduction in deployment.
With the new influx of missiles getting mothballed, the Titan II started seeing a second life as a launch vehicle. Although there were previous proposals for such use in the past, the missile began to have concrete plans for space launch getting made, primarily with Project Gemini for NASA (as the Titan II GLV) and the Air Force's X-20 Dyna Soar. Additionally, representatives from both NASA and the Department of Defense formed the Large Launch Vehicle Planning Group (LLVPG), which aimed to use the LGM-25C as the base architecture for a medium-lift launch vehicle designed for putting objects with a mass greater than 10,000 kg into low Earth orbit. The plan called for the Titan II to have the Transtage third stage added on top for the boosting of payloads into geostationary transfer orbit, as well as two large segmented solid rocket boosters (SRBs) attached to the missile's sides. Additionally, as existing Titan II launch sites at Cape Canaveral (such as Launch Complex 19) could not support these modifications, the LLVPG instead proposed to construct an entirely new site where these rockets would get assembled and launched, similar to the planned Saturn V at the nearby Launch Complex 39 of the Launch Operations Center.
In 1961, The LLVPG's medium-lift Titan plan was accepted for use by the Air Force, and development of the Integrate-Transfer-Launch Complex commenced on November 24, 1962.[5] As part of the construction process, a total of 4.97 million cubic meters (6.5 million cubic yards) were dredged in order to create artificial islands in the Banana River that could support the complex's integration facilities.[1] Additionally, the Titan IIIC Railroad was laid to assist in the transportation of the solid rocket segments and other vehicle parts to the assembly buildings, connecting to the Florida East Coast Railway via the NASA Railroad to the north.
The Air Force also had the ITL designed to allow for the rapid assembly and launching of Titan rockets, aiming for it to be able to handle as many as fifty flights per year.[6] As part of this endeavor, early plans for the complex included the construction of a third pad to the west of LC-40 and 41, aptly named Launch Complex 42. However, concerns arose regarding LC-42's placement potentially conflicting with Launch Complex 39C (now LC-39A) at the newly-renamed Kennedy Space Center, ultimately leading to its cancellation in favor of increased use from LC-40 and 41. The emphasis on cadence was especially made prominent following the 1963 establishment of the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program, which replaced Dyna Soar with a Gemini-based vehicle architecture. During this change, the X-20 Titan pad of Launch Complex 33 was cancelled, with any MOL flights being performed at the ITL and Space Launch Complex 6 at Vandenberg Air Force Base.
By April 1965, construction of the ITL Complex was officially completed and made ready to support the Titan III program and the Titan IIIC. In total, approximately US$48.8 million ($512.4 million in 2025) were used in the issuing of building contracts.[5]
Titan III (1965–1989)
[edit]
At the time of its activation in 1965, the ITL Complex became the first piece of launch architecture to use a rolling-to-pad approach, later seen at sites such as LC-39 at KSC, ELA-3 at the Guiana Space Centre, and the Starship OLPs at Starbase. The assembly process started at the Vertical Integration Building (VIB), where the Titan's first stage, second stage, and Transtage were raised and stacked on a mobile launch platform, inside one of the VIB's four high bays.[7] The core stack, similar in structure to the Titan IIIA, would then get moved to the Solid Motor Assembly Building (SMAB) by a double-tracked railway system specifically designed for the MLP. Once inside the SMAB, the various solid rocket segments would get fueled, stacked into two completed SRBs, and attached to the side of the core segment. Upon completion, the Titan IIIC would exit the SMAB and get transported to either Launch Complex 40 (LC-40) or Launch Complex 41 (LC-41), both identical in their layout and function.[8] After arriving at one of the two pads, the launch vehicle would get enveloped in a movable service structure, where the payload and any potential kickstage would get attached to the rocket and encapsulated in a fairing. Once done, the service structure moves back, the Titan core stages get fueled, and the launch countdown begins.
On June 18, 1965, the ITL Complex witnessed its inaugural launch with the maiden flight of the Titan IIIC, launching out of LC-40 and carrying a boilerplate payload as part of a demonstration mission.[9] The first flight from LC-41 came six months later on December 21, flying with two Lincoln Experimental Satellites bound for geostationary orbit.[10] Throughout the complex's years with the Titan III, the vast majority of payloads launched were military satellites such as Vela, the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program (IDCSP), and the Defense Support Program (DSP), often flown in rideshares or outside of low Earth orbit. In addition, most civilian Titan flights from the ITL were boosted into heliocentric orbit, often to other planets as part of various NASA exploration programs.
The first notable flight to come out of the complex was on November 3, 1966, with the launch of OPS-0855 from LC-40. A launch conducted as part of the MOL program, a boilerplate payload—comprising the reused Gemini SC-2 capsule (previously flown on Gemini 2) and a repurposed Titan I oxidizer tank—was launched into orbit. The flight served as a demonstration for a future operational mission that would have used the upgraded Titan IIIM, which aimed to use a stretched core stage (later seeing use with some Titan IIIB variations) and to replace the IIIC's five-segment UA120 boosters with seven-segment UA1207s. OPS-0855 would later turn out to be the only launch of the MOL program, as various delays and cost increases associated with the Vietnam War ultimately led to its cancellation by the Nixon administration in 1969.[11]
In accordance with the troubles that plagued and killed off the MOL, the need for the ITL Complex to support such a high cadence quickly faded away, with the Air Force instead aiming for a much lower flight rate of five launches per year. As such, the need to use both pads 40 and 41 was similarly discarded, with all remaining Titan IIIC flights in the 1960s solely launching from LC-41. In 1970, these launches were relocated to LC-40, with the final Titan IIIC flight from 41 occurring on May 23, 1969, carrying two Vela satellites into medium Earth orbit. One of these satellites, OPS-6911, later became known for detecting a double flash in the southwest Indian Ocean in 1979, sparking the Vela incident.[12]
LC-41 gets redesigned for Titan IIIE in the 70s, where Centaur third stage is integrated instead of Transtage (Still gets added at the VIB)
Stuff like viking and voyager are launched from there
1980s roll around, Titan IIIC is replaced by the Titan 34D, which allows for an option between the Transtage, IUS, and TOS
integration for third stage still occurs at VIB
still basically used for military payloads
launches wind down because Space Shuttle can do everything and the kitchen sink
Challenger happens, nevermind
Commercial Titan III and Titan IV (1990–2005)
[edit]Late 80s, Titan manufacturer Martin Marietta collabs with the air force to renovate ITL post-34D
plan has LC-40 used by civvie CT3, LC-41 used for military Titan IV
T4 SRBs are taller than T3, SMARF therefore built for SRB stacking and strapping
SMAB gets retrofitted for CT3
I think both have third stages integrated at pad?
CT3 is expensive and bad, leads to early cancellation because customers like Delta II, Atlas I, and Ariane 4 more (also Soviets fell, now Proton and whatnot are in the mix)
SMAB therefore gets abandoned, and LC-40 gets retrofitted to launch Titan IV
Martin Marietta merges with Lockheed to form Lockmart, continue in operations
mostly military payloads, though Cassini was a thing too
T4 is good, but also really expensive and old
Lockmart also got Atlas after GD imploded, and it's easier and cheaper
leads to them deciding to slowly retire Titan, last LC-41 launch in 1999, last LC-40 launch in 2005
SMARF gets abandoned, rails get torn out, VIB gets demolished
Leases to ULA and SpaceX (from 2002)
[edit]LC-41 gets retired earlier because Lockmart wants to use it for Atlas V, gets renamed to SLC-41 because EELV money yo
Titan infra gets demolished, VIF gets built because VIB and SMARF were still being used (and SMAB still has rockets go through it)
First launch in 2002, with hotbird
Private spaceflight industry almost implodes because dotcom bubble, leads to Lockmart and Boeing (who has delta) forming ULA together
Various launches like New Horizons and X-37B and Mars rovers my oh my
2007, Air Force leases LC-40 to SpaceX for Falcon 9, gets renamed to SLC-40 because EELV money yo
tears down Titan infra, builds HIF at the pad
also converts SMAB into payload processing (when did they do this?)
First Falcon launch in 2010, using F9 1.0
used for COTS with Dragon
renovated in 2013 for F9 1.1, now can support Fairing payloads
gets dedicated for uncrewed F9 launches after SpX got LC-39A's lease in 2014
at SLC-41, Boeing wins CCdev contract for Starliner, which uses Atlas V
therefore, a launch tower gets built
gets used first in 2019, first crew launch is in 2024
AMOS-6 happens, SLC-40 gets put out of commission for a year
SpaceX also builds a launch tower there for Dragon 2
starts becoming big workhorse pad because starlink
Russian annexation of Crimea happens, which puts ULA in hot water because AV uses RD-180
causes Vulcan to get developed to replace A5, D2, and D4
wants to have increased launch cadence, so they rename SMARF to SPOC as a 2nd VIF, builds another ML there, and rebuilds all the rail lines between it and SLC-41
Also done because AV will still be launching, so they can build an AV in the VIF and a Vulcan in SPOC
First Vulcan launch in early 2024
Launch statistics
[edit]SLC-40
[edit]
Launches
[edit]For a more detailed list of launches, see the tables at SLC-40's page.
SLC-41
[edit]Launches
[edit]For a more detailed list of launches, see the tables at SLC-41's page.
Launch complexes
[edit]Space Launch Complex 40
[edit]Originally known as LC-40
Used for launching Titan IIIC, 34D, CT3, and IV
now used by spaceX for Falcon 9
originally identical to SLC-41, had MSS and launch tower
stripped down for falcon 9 originally, also HIF was built
AMOS kefuffle rended it out of action
Launch tower later rebuilt for Dragon 2
Space Launch Complex 41
[edit]Originally known as LC-41
located at CCSFS, but as an enclave of KSC
use for launching Titan IIIC, IIIE, and IV
now used by ULA for Atlas V and Vulcan
originally identical to SLC-40, had MSS and launch tower
stripped town for Atlas V originally
launch tower later rebuilt for Starliner
Launch Complex 42
[edit]Was to be built to the west of SLC-40, in the banana river
would've been used for Titan IIIC
never built due to proximity issues with Apollo stuff at LC-39
Assembly facilities
[edit]Vertical Integration Building
[edit]
Used to stack Titan cores, IE the first stage, second stage, and third stage
built in early 60s
Similar to the VAB
Four high bays/cells on the southern face
can also support payload integration
demolished in 2006 after Titan IV retired
Solid Motor Assembly Building
[edit]
Used to assemble multisegment SRBs and attach them
built in early 60s
one bay for the core and ML to go through
core entered through south, got SRBs attached, rocket left through north
only used for Titan III
Now used by SpaceX for payload processing, aka taking the satellites, getting them ready for launch, and putting them in a fairing
damaged by hurricane matthew in 2016
Vertical Integration Facility-C
[edit].jpg?lang=en)
Originally the SMARF, then the SPOC
like SMAB, also used to assemble multisegment SRBs and attach them
built in late 80s
located near where the paths between 40 and 41 diverge
One bay for the core
only one door though
only used for Titan IV
renamed to SPOC in 2019, was used by ULA to build a second Vulcan ML
additionally used as a second VIF for Vulcan
Vertical Integration Facility
[edit]_(cropped).jpg?lang=en)
used to stack Atlas V and Vulcan
built in late 90s and early 2000s
located near SLC-41
One bay, ML door to the north
Originally for atlas V, modified in 2020s for Vulcan, now can do both
See also
[edit]
- List of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island launch sites
- Space Launch Complex 40
- Space Launch Complex 41
- Launch Complex 39
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum". ccspacemuseum.org. Retrieved 2025-04-10.
- ^ Kelly, John (April 25, 2007). "SpaceX cleared for Cape launches". Florida Today. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved June 5, 2010.
- ^ "Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum". ccspacemuseum.org. Retrieved 2025-04-10.
- ^ "LGM-30G Minuteman III Fact Sheet".
- ^ a b "Complex 40 / LC-40 -- Cape Canaveral Air Station". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 2025-05-26.
- ^ NASASpaceflight [@NASASpaceflight] (27 December 2022). "The US Air Force Titan III I-T-L (Integrate - Transfer - Launch) complex. Completed in 1965, the ITL was a rail-mobile-based site that was originally designed to handle as many as 50 launches per year at SLC-40 and SLC-41 at Cape Canaveral. #TitanTuesday" (Tweet). Retrieved 27 May 2025 – via Twitter.
- ^ Retro Space HD (2023-04-20). Biography of a Titan - AI upscale, USAF, Titan IIIC Development, Satellite Launch, 1970, Documentary. Retrieved 2025-05-27 – via YouTube.
- ^ AIRBOYD (2011-11-28). Titan III Research And Development (1967). Retrieved 2025-05-27 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Cape Canaveral LC40". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved 2025-05-29.
- ^ "Cape Canaveral LC41". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved 2025-05-29.
- ^ Berger, Carl (2015). "A History of the Manned Orbiting Laboratory Program Office". In Outzen, James D. (ed.). The Dorian Files Revealed: The Secret Manned Orbiting Laboratory Documents Compendium (PDF). Chantilly, Virginia: Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance. ISBN 978-1-937219-18-5. OCLC 966293037. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
- ^ "Vela 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 (advanced Vela)". space.skyrocket.de.