Shaba North

Shaba North
Kapani Tonneo
Formation1976
Typerocket launch site
Coordinates7°55′26″S 28°32′10″E / 7.9239844°S 28.5360758°E / -7.9239844; 28.5360758
OwnerOTRAG

Shaba North (also mentioned as Kapani Tonneo)[1][2] was the launch site of the first rockets launched by Orbital Transport und Raketen AktienGesellschaft, or Orbital Forwarding Company in English ("OTRAG").[3][4][5]

It is located at the edge of a mesa in Shaba (now Katanga province), the Democratic Republic of Congo.[6] In 1976 Luvua Airport was built to supply the site.[7][8][9]

In 1977 and in 1978 three test flights of OTRAG rockets were launched from Shaba North.[1][10]

In 1979 OTRAG stopped launching rockets from Shaba North for political reasons.[2] Its launching activities were later moved to Sabha, Libya.

Launches

Three test flights were launched from Shaba North.[1]

Date OTRAG version Apogee Details
1977 May 18 4x9m 15 km Four-module test vehicle, 6 m long; propulsion test
1978 May 19 4x9m 30 km Four-module test vehicle, 6 m long; high altitude night test
1978 Jun 5 4x15m 0 Lost control and crashed in seconds

Nearest locations

References

  1. ^ a b c Grahn, Sven. "OTRAG". www.svengrahn.pp.se. Retrieved 2024-11-28.
  2. ^ a b "Kapani Tonneo". www.astronautix.com. Retrieved 2024-11-28.
  3. ^ "Shaba North". Encyclopedia Astronautica. 2005-04-12. Archived from the original on 12 April 2005. Retrieved 2024-11-28.
  4. ^ Serra, Jean-Jacques (2005-02-07). "OTRAG". Rockets in Europe. Archived from the original on 7 February 2005. Retrieved 2024-11-28.
  5. ^ Pirard, Theo (1997-06-01). "German rockets in africa: The explosive heritage of peenemunde". Acta Astronautica. 40 (12): 885–898. Bibcode:1997AcAau..40..885P. doi:10.1016/S0094-5765(97)00183-5. ISSN 0094-5765.
  6. ^ Loffman, Reuben (2014). "An obscured revolution? USAID, the North Shaba Project, and the Zaïrian administration, 1976-1986". Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines. 48 (3): 425–444. doi:10.1080/00083968.2014.943135. ISSN 0008-3968. JSTOR 43860519.
  7. ^ Leitenberger, Bernd. "OTRAG Rakete". Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  8. ^ "Dann wäre Deutschland führend in der Welt". Der Spiegel. No. 33/1978. 1978-08-13. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  9. ^ Schwehm, Oliver (director) (September 27, 2018). Fly Rocket Fly (Motion picture). Germany.
  10. ^ Grahn, Sven. "OTRAG at Esrange". www.svengrahn.pp.se. Retrieved 2024-11-28.
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