Tooling for the oxygen tank is also under way and fabrication of the tank itself is scheduled to begin shortly.

With construction well under way, Rotary Rocket Company is on schedule to fly an approach and landing demonstrator or "Atmospheric Test Vehicle" in the first half of 1999, and a propulsion flight test vehicle in the second half of 1999.

The Roton will be piloted during all development and operational flights as this has proven to be the safest way of operating any air or space vehicle. A flight test team is being assembled now. All Roton flight crew will be experienced graduates of military and civilian flight test programs and all will be well versed in handling the very latest high-performance air and rotorcraft.

The Roton will, initially, be targeted at the burgeoning market for deploying constellations of low Earth orbit (LEO) telecommunications satellites. "We will offer commercial service to low Earth orbit during the first half of 2000, with cargo deployments and cargo retrievals supervised by the Roton's two-person crew," said Gary Hudson, CEO.

Because the composite materials used for most major Roton parts are simply and quickly replicated off inexpensive molds, Hudson noted, the company will be able to build a stream of vehicles at modest incremental cost. This will allow the company to pursue a variety of different markets, flying frequently from launch sites all over the globe. "Follow-on market opportunities for the Roton include solar power satellites and space manufacturing of new materials and pharmaceuticals," Mr. Hudson added.

Rotary Rocket Company has staffed up to meet this challenge with 50 direct employees split between its engineering facility here in the high desert and its headquarters in Redwood Shores, CA. The project's contractors employ another 200-plus workers around the country.

The company has raised $17 million from investors and has hired Barclays Capital, New York, to assist in an additional $20 million private placement.

The Roton burns ordinary kerosene for fuel, compared to the much more expensive liquid hydrogen used on the U.S. Space Shuttle and planned for NASA's X-33 suborbital test vehicle. This will make the Roton inexpensive to fly as well as inexpensive to build. Kerosene also is denser than hydrogen, so the Roton will be more compact and consequently easier and cheaper to develop than vehicles using the difficult to handle supercold liquid hydrogen.

After nearly two years of intense design effort, the Roton design has progressed from concept to actuality. A smoothly tapering cone in outline, the Roton has been optimized for quick turn around flight capability and ground-handling efficiency. The cargo compartment and crew cabin are positioned towards the rear of the vehicle. This improves operability on the ground and in space. It also allows for a cargo hold capable of accommodating the vast majority of existing and proposed satellites in the world.

A fully reusable space vehicle, the Roton lands gently and precisely using helicopter-style rotors. These rotors are simply folded flat against the vehicle's sides during powered flight. They are deployed during the descent, ensuring that the Roton is fully under the control of its highly trained flight crew at all times.

The unique RocketJet(TM) rotary, altitude compensating engine is positioned at the base of the vehicle, and utilizes centrifugal force to spin fuel and oxidizer out to dozens of small combustors arranged in a ring pattern. The simple spin-fed design eliminates the need for the heavy and expensive turbopumps that are used in most current expendable rockets and the Space Shuttle.

The ''Rotary'' in the company's name refers both to the rotary pumping action of the RocketJet engine and the free-spinning helicopter-style blades that deploy for gentle, precision landings.

Rotary Rocket Company has recently unveiled a new Web site that details Roton flight configuration and gives background on the company, its technology and the development schedule.