Rocket Engine, Liquid Fuel, XLR-48-RM-2, for Corvus Air-to-Surface Missile

Cylindrical, long, with slightly flared exhaust nozzle at end, and propellant inlet pipes alongside combustion chamber; with three wire strands, 34in. long each, plastic insulated, red, black, and green, from solenoid valve at right angle of combustion chamber; small turbopump attached to back of combustion chamber by two propellant inlet pipes; cartridge starter cylinder alongside top of pump and in axis of motor overall; overall, painted glossy gray except for aluminum parts; slight corrosion on line or pipe from starting cartridge cylinder; aluminum line alongside chamber; triangular, sky blue, white, and black decal on lower half of combustion chamber, letters RMI (for Reaction Motors, Inc.), and stylized rocket in middle, flying up; decal with registered tradmark sign (letter "R" in circle); note that this decal was an old RMI company logo whereas the Corvus XLR-48-RM-2 engine development was developed by the firm when it when it was still RMI but its development continued into 1960 after RMI became a Division of Thiokol Chemical Corp. (in the Spring of 1958) and was known as RMD after that date.

This is the pre-packaged liquid fuel Patriot rocket motor for the planned air-to-surface long range (75 miles) Corvus missile for the U.S. Navy, to be launched by carrier-borne aircraft against enemy ships or tactical land targets. The motor, of 1,030 pounds of thrust, was developed by the Reaction Motors Division of the Thiokol Chemical Corporation (RMD).

The pre-packaged motor concept was pioneered by RMD by the mid-1950's and used storable, hypergolic (self-igniting) propellants. It was thus a simple system but much more powerful than comparable-sized solid-fuel motors. Test flights were made in 1960, but Corvus was cancelled four months later. This object was donated to the Smithsonian in 1977 from the Thiokol Chemical Corp.