VTC-3 is a 160 ton steel and concrete structure. It consists of 60 large 2,5 ton concrete blocks. These make up the flame bucket and fragment containment. Inside the massive structure we find the flame deflector. Its job is to divert the hundreds of cubic meters of exhaust gasses that are generated each second during a main stage test of the HEAT 1600 single TM260 rocket engine. The flame deflector is water cooled. Two diesel engine powered centrifugal pumps supply cooling water at a rate of 20 ton pr. minute – to prevent the structure from melting. The flame deflector is cooled by a waterfall on the front and by dual “showerheads” on the back side. The cooling water enters the test stand via two six inch pipelines. To control the coolant flow, two remotely operated six inch butterfly valves are installed in the pipelines.

The big test stand sits on the grounds of a derelict shipyard. Its 55.000 cubic meter large drydock basin is used for cooling water. It also prevents fire from spreading in the southern direction. To the north, a ten meter pile of gravel contains the test stand area. To the east we find the sea, and to the vest we have a large open space, with the command post placed 300 meters away. The VTC-3 is designed to contain any imaginable test anomaly.

Above the flame pit a steel girder bridge made of IPE 400 profiles holds the booster. The steel structure has all the same hold down positions as the launch pad, and indeed – VTC-3 could act as a HEAT 1600 launch complex if it was not for the lack of frangible nuts in the hold down system. The HEAT 1600 booster is held down by four 40 mm bolts. They lock it to the IPE 400 profiles via four 30 mm thick triangular steel plates.

In the event of a serious engine mishap, the tank structure may be damaged. To contain this, it is held down by four additional hardpoints mounted on the intertank, just below the LOX tank.

VTC-3 is not an engine test stand – instead it’s designed to test entire flight stages. All the umbilicals and support systems mimic the ones on the launch pad, so the tests are also verification of the functionality of the ground support systems. One difference is, however, that the VTC-3 does not have a service / umbilical tower like Sputnik. We can do this because, unlike flights, we don’t have either spacecrafts or potential upper stages during a static test.

VTC-3 can accommodate other rocket stages, and other types of rocket engines than the HEAT 1600. This is done using a number of adapters that make smaller rockets like the HEAT 2X fit the test stand. The very powerful solid fuel launch escape system motor will also be testfired on this site. In fact, the very first test ever conducted at the VTC-3 site was a solid propellant miniature launch escape system test motor.

It has been decided that the maximum allowable propellant load on the VTC -3 will be 2000 kg. This makes it possible to conduct full duration static test on HEAT 2X, but for HEAT 1600 it will give us a maximum test duration of sixteen seconds. The HEAT 2X and HEAT 1600 rocket motors are basically the same design except for the size, making it easier to accept this limitation.

During tests, the entire area around the test stand is covered by water from the cooling system. In the event of a fuel (alcohol) spill, the alcohol will be dissolved and not be able to ignite.

Together with the construction facilities in HAB2, the VTC-3 is the most important land based Copenhagen Suborbitals structures.

HEAT 1600 – Copenhagen Suborbitals big liquid fueled booster – is destined to become the most powerful amateur rocket ever devised. At 260 kN, its thrust will exceed that of the V2 missile or the X-15 space plane.

Let’s get the numbers right here…

Amateur rocketry uses a letter classification of motor size. It starts with A motors at 2,5 newton seconds. However, amateurs practically do fly larger M, N end O size motors at up to 40 thousand newton seconds. This numbers was exceeded by the total impulse of the HEAT 1X back in 2011. In its 16 second powered phase of its flight it produced some 75 thousand newton seconds. It lifted off with potential for 135 thousand newton second, but the engine had to be shut down during flight due to a trajectory anomaly.

By 2012, the flight of the two stage Smaragd marked the end of the phase with passive stable rockets in CS.

By 2013 we had successfully flown Sapphire with active guidance, and we are now aiming for the flight of the 260 thousand newton seconds HEAT 2X. This pressure feed ten meter by 65 cm diameter rocket is scheduled for lift off in mid 2014

However, the HEAT 1600 under construction takes this to a whole new level. Its total  impulse during flight will be an unbelievable 26 million newton seconds.

To conduct flight qualification of this massive turbo pump feed liquid propellant propulsion system – a test stand on a similar scale is needed.

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