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Valley facility producing key parts for Orion spacecraft
Decades ago, Honeywell worked on the Apollo moon missions. Now, the company is working on the next moon mission, and FOX 10's Danielle Miller has more on the role a Valley facility will play in the mission.
GLENDALE, Ariz. - A Honeywell facility in the Valley is playing a major role in NASA's next mission to the moon.
The plant, located in Glendale, is producing some key parts for Orion spacecraft fleet.
"It's going to be the thing that the next generation of our kids, our grandkids, our great-grandkids will be talking about," said Mike Elias, VP/General Manager for Honeywell Aerospace.
Elias says they've been working on the Orion spacecraft mission since 2007. They've completed the production phase, and are now building the hardware, getting ready to take flight and put humans back on the Moon for the first time since 1972.
"In 2022, they're going to orbit the moon, and in 2024, we're going to try to do the first landing on the moon, and then farther than that, we're going to go based on how the missions are established," said Elias. "We'll go all the way to Mars."
About 800 people at the facility have worked on the development of displays, hand controllers, and all of the software that goes in the capsule. This technology will help astronauts orbit and land on the Moon safely.
"Pointing, direction, knowing where you're going to, the ability to slow down the vehicle or to speed the vehicle, or to get to the exact area of where it's going to mate with another, or maybe the space station," said Elias.
Honeywell worked on the Apollo missions that brought humans to the Moon for the first time. Elias says the company is thrilled to be doing it once again.