Prospero /Black Arrow were cancelled partly because the Americasns had offered to launch for us for a song, and partly as the halfwitted farmer who was minister of stuff at the rime was convinced that there was no future in commercial satellite launches.
As soon as Black Arrow wss scrapped, the cheap American launch offer was withdrawn, and as for commercial satellite launching...
HMG actually tried to cancel the space programme before anything was launched, but the teams and kit were already at Woomera and the people there were suffering a high degree of selective deafness that was later hushed up (source: conversations with several retired British rocket scientists. )
I can recommend a trip to the Needles Battery on the IOW, which is now restored (ish) and very visitable to see the test sites.
G
Last edited by Genghis the Engineer; 29th Sep 2014 at 11:31.