Spacedev Co. delivered a pair of subsystems to prime contractor Boeing Co. for the Orbital Express program, Spacedev announced May 1.

The goal of the Orbital Express program, funded b the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, is to validate the feasibility of the robotic, autonomous on-orbit refueling and reconfiguration of satellites.

Starsys Inc., a division of Spacedev, developed the Spacecraft-to-Spacecraft Separation System, which provides shockless separation of the two Orbital Express spacecraft after launch, and the Orbital Express Capture System, which is responsible for the capture and docking of the spacecraft prior to servicing.

A demonstration launch of Orbital Express is scheduled for October.