Royal Cryrian Space Agency: Difference between revisions

| location = Prince Stefan AirbaseAir Station

}}The '''Royal Cryrian Space Agency (RCSA)''' is a governmental body under the Royal Cryrian Air Force which coordinates all military and commercial space activities for the Kingdom.

The Agency was founded in 19701975 when the Cryrian Defense Forces voluntarily dismantled their ballistic missile program and repurposed the technology for satellite launch purposes. The RCSA makes Cryria one of the smaller countries in the world with an independent space program and indigenous launch capabilities, a limitation which has extensively shaped the RCSA's operations and activities. For instance, while the RCSA is active in Urth's orbit, it has yet to conduct an independent manned mission or to invest heavily in further space exploration.

Cryrian interest in space exploration dates back to the 1950s, and was initially largely academic in nature. Beginning in the 1960s, the Cryrian Defense Forces began funding research in order to support a national ballistic missile program. These efforts came to a halt when the country opted to maintain a policy of nuclear latency as opposed to pursuing an arsenal of its own. As the missile technology of the time was deemed inadequate for delivering conventional warheads, the ballistic missile program was also scrapped in 19701974. At the advice of faculty at the University of Talvere, the technology, funding, and launch sites were instead invested towards developing a genuine space program as an autonomous branch under the umbrella of the RCRAF.

Like the rest of the world's space programs, the RCSA was subjected to a three-year moratorium when a botched [[Vakarastan|Vakari]] launch resulted in the [[Space Debris Crisis]]. During this period, much of the RCSA's annual budget was temporarily reallocated towards keeping private space enterprises afloat during the dry period. This was particularly important for the continued solvency of Ocean's Wave, which ultimately sold 60% of its shares to the Cryrian government.

==== Prince Stefan AirbaseAir Station ====

Prince Stefan AirbaseAir Station is the main headquarters and spaceport of the RCSA. The site is located on the Valngi Peninsula. Though Prince Stefan remains a functioning military site with an RCRAF presence, the facilities are also available for commercial launches.

Ocean's Wave, Inc. is a company founded in 1995 to provide orbital launch services. The Tarva-based corporation is majority-owned by the Cryrian government, and distinguishes itself by using a mobile maritime launch platform to facilitate optimal launches for countries and entities that otherwise lack direct access to sites to regions of interest.

Ocean's Wave began as a subsidiary project launched by the Cryrian shipping giant [[Marlberg ASAB]], and it conducted its first demonstration launch in 1999. The company uses a customized sea-launch variant of Ezethla's Arrow known as Ezethla-S to conduct launches from a repurposed mobile oil drilling rig that was purchased secondhand from Royal Cryrian Oil. These rockets are stored and prepared in Vesterholm, before being sailed out and assembled on a command ship that accompanies the launch platform. Ezethla-S can then be moved onto the platform and launched from an optimal position in international waters, typically at the equator. Military launches are typically shadowed by RCRN elements, and a special unit of Naval Infantry is deployed on the vessels as a security measure.