US military-backed cargo pod promises 90-minute orbital delivery anywhere on Earth, 10-ton Ghost vehicle gets first real-world test

A U.S. military-backed company plans to deliver a payload to any point on Earth within 90 minutes by prepositioning assets in space and then calling down delivery vehicles as needed. Sierra Space, a subsidiary of the Sierra Nevada Corporation, has successfully completed two test drops of its Ghost reentry vehicle while carrying a bottle of whiskey and a software-defined radio. According to Aviation Week, the test was conducted using high-altitude balloons that dropped it from 35,000 feet and 68,500 feet.

While this test isn’t as exciting as SpaceX rockets landing on a platform at sea, it’s still an achievement for the team working on the project, as it’s the first test of the vehicle in two years. This demonstration is part of the U.S. Space Command’s Apollo Nexus training exercise, which aims to demonstrate the needed synchronization of multiple units in complex operations.

The test’s payload isn’t just two random items, either. They’ve been specifically selected to show that liquids and sensitive electronics could survive part of the trip back to the surface. “We were able to safely demonstrate that and prove that we could come through all of those environments and then be recoverable in a certain period of time by the team on the ground,” Sierra Space senior vice president Erik Daehler told the publication.

It should be noted that these cargo units aren’t designed to be launched by rockets from another side of the world to be delivered to frontline forces as needed. Instead, they’re designed to stay in orbit for up to five years and then be called down to troops as needed — similar to how Orbital Depots drop down from the sky when called by an SCV in StarCraft II. “Getting something into theater to the warfighter when they need it is critical,” Daehler added. “If you’re in a denied area where you couldn’t get a C-17 or a C-130 to be able to drop into the theater, space is a perfect logistics node.”

The company says that Ghost can deliver its payload to any point on Earth within 90 minutes of getting called down. However, since it is based in space, the military would have to anticipate what supplies are needed, launch them, and keep them in orbit for up to five years. This is similar to how the U.S. pre-positions supply and cargo ships in remote bases across the world like Guam and Diego Garcia, so it could easily deploy materiel where it’s needed. The Ghost is a seemingly small unit, though, with a capacity of just five to ten tons, so it won’t be able to deploy tanks or artillery pieces across the world. Still, it’s a useful device for dropping equipment, ammunition, and supplies, like this in-house assembled drone or microwave counter-drone system, to units that need them without having to risk assets and aircrew.

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