From the Silo and Frontier AstronauticsBill Stone, president of Stone Aerospace, an Austin company that makes robots, space suits and other space-exploration equipment, thinks the Viper could become “a tool for smart, nimble, small aerospace companies. Rather than going to Lockheed, we just go to Tim and say, ‘I want a Viper’ or ‘10 Vipers.’ ” A company that wants to enter the space-tourism market could build a craft around the Viper instead of designing its own engine. Similarly, a lunar-lander mission could use a few Vipers to handle the variety of tasks—leaving orbit, landing, taking off again—that now require 10 engines.
Bendel’s company, Frontier Astronautics, is even applying for an FAA permit to turn the Wyoming missile complex into a spaceport. “It’s kind of a gold rush,” Bendel says of the current era. “Everyone’s trying to get their stake in the market. And we’re selling shovels.”
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