In article ,
Peter Stickney wrote:
It's not all that hard to put the launcher on an airplane and point it
where you want it to go. It's a lot tougher to build a portable,
instantly deployable tracking range.
Depends on whether you *need* such a thing... which isn't clear. The
Russians don't track their operational launches. Japan relies mostly on
the launcher tracking itself and reporting back. Sea Launch has no
downrange tracking stations at all, although the launcher can relay data
via TDRS.
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