| Administrative History | The Rocket Department at Rolls-Royce, Derby, headed by Dr A V Cleaver, was involved in the Air Ministry's Blue Streak missile project, part of Britain's proposed independent nuclear deterrent strategy from the mid 1950s. The RZ.1 engine for the Blue Streak missile was built by Rolls-Royce under licence from the Rocketdyne division of the North American Aviation Company. The technology was developed in Rolls-Royce's own RZ.2 engine, references to which form the core of this collection.
The Blue Streak missile project was cancelled by the British government in April 1960, but the RZ.2 lived on as the rocket engine for a European satellite launching vehicle under the European Space Vehicle Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO). An RZ.3 booster rocket engine, for a multi-stage satellite launching vehicle, was in development when the British government pulled out of ELDO in 1968 and the British space programme ceased to exist. This, and other changes, led to the disbandment of the Rolls-Royce Rocket Department in the later 1960s. It appears that at this time most of the departmental records were destroyed by the company. |
| Custodial History | The papers were donated to the Record Office by a private individual in August 2000. |