“While the J-2 hasn’t been used since the last Saturn 1B launch in 1975, he was confident that the engine would be available, based on conversations with executives at Rocketdyne, the Boeing subsidiary that built the J-2.”

“They actually have 12 J-2s sitting around,” he said, and added that the company felt they could get a production line for new J-2 engines going in a couple years.

12 spares? That will do fine for 2010 & 2011 giving an extra couple years to get the assembly line going.

One problem: Rocketdyne stopped making the J2 oh, about 30 years ago or so. I bet you probably have to rebuild the production line, tooling, etc. from scratch. Basically, a whole new engine. How much will that cost? How long will that take?

Though Mike said in his talk on tuesday, that little offical word has come out about his commercial plans because now they are concentrating on return to flight. And to expect something more concrete in the “very early fall”

http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewnews.html?id=1035

so 3-4 months before i can get depressed again.

If this were 1961 5 years would be plenty of time to get that done.

Thiokol RSRM + J2 apparently can meet that deadline.

” SEC. 8074. Funds available to the Department of Defense for the Global Positioning System during the current fiscal year may be used to fund civil requirements associated with the satellite and ground control segments of such system’s modernization program.”

Civil can mean NASA, and if they used a HLV could get more up there faster. And if modernazation means safegaurds from attack being able to launch a bunch more quickly could be in it. THough i don’t see how a shuttle derived HLV could launch at a moments notice.

Might be an amendment he put in yesturday that hasn’t shown up on thomas.

There is also an admendment H.AMDT.326 titled “Space Preservation Act of 2005″ that was shut down. No text of it is available though and it wasn’t Bishop that proposed it.

The cynic in me says he just said that to apease his space contingent.