The manned spacecraft tender

Throughout 2000-2005 RKK Energiya funded Kliper exclusively with its own means. Prospects for government funding emerged in October 2005 when an advanced manned transportation system was approved for development under Russia’s Federal Space Program for 2006-2015. Under new government rules, the Russian Space Agency launched a tender between three companies in November 2005 to build the ship. Requirements were for the spacecraft to be at least 80 percent reusable and fly at least 20 missions, carry up to six people, and have a cargo capacity of at least 500 kg up and down. The maiden flight should take place in 2013. Vying for the contract—apart from RKK Energiya—were NPO Molniya with an adapted version of its air-launched MAKS system and the Khrunichev Center with Angara-launched capsule-type vehicles derived from its TKS spacecraft.

In its tender proposal RKK Energiya portrayed Kliper as one step in a multi – phased architecture for Russia’s piloted space program until 2030. In this vision Kliper would be preceded by a cardinally modernized Soyuz incorporating many elements of Kliper and succeeded by piloted Moon and Mars ships using a combination of Soyuz and Kliper technology. By now only the winged version of Kliper was eyed, because that would offer more comfortable re-entry and landing conditions for the many paying passengers (including tourists) that were expected to fly on the vehicle to return at least some of the development cost. The VA’s crew module was now cylindrically shaped with different seating arrangements.

Under the new plans Kliper was to be developed in two versions, one primarily intended for long solo missions and the other for flights to ISS. The first would be a partially reusable vehicle consisting of the VA and ABO plus the launch escape adapter. The other would be a fully reusable spacecraft made up of just the VA and the launch escape adapter with its solid-fuel engines, which after a nominal launch would stay attached to the VA to perform the deorbit burn. The ABO would be made redundant by a reusable space tug called Parom (“Ferry”) that would pick up Kliper after launch, tow it to ISS, and later return it back to a lower orbit for retrofire. Parom is a 12.5-ton space tug permanently stationed in orbit that can tow both Kliper vehicles and unmanned cargo containers to ISS. Differing in mass (14 tons vs. 12.5 tons), the two versions of Kliper would be launched by different versions of the upgraded Soyuz launch vehicle known as Soyuz-3 (for the solo version) and Soyuz-2-3 (for the ISS version). Payload capacity up and down would be 500 kg for both [17].