USA awards contracts worth billions for military satellite launches

On April 4, the US Space Force announced the award of contracts for the launch of military satellites. The contract is worth around 13.7 billion US dollars. The missions are for the three space companies SpaceX, United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin and the financial year 2025 to 2029. The rockets are actually due to be launched between 2027 and 2032.

The contracts fall under the third phase of the ″National Security Space Launch″ program, which is intended to guarantee the United States permanent access to space and is designed for the launch of particularly important or secret payloads. The launch vehicles selected for the program must be correspondingly reliable and robust.

Elon Musk's space company SpaceX has been awarded the largest share of the overall contract with 28 missions, or around 60 percent. The launches are to take place on the tried-and-tested Falcon 9 and the heavy-duty Falcon Heavy rocket. With almost 140 launches in 2024, SpaceX is currently the most active space company.

The United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, is responsible for 19 missions, accounting for around 35 percent of the total order. The Vulcan Centaur, which was first launched in January 2024, serves as the launch vehicle. Unlike SpaceX's Falcon 9, however, this rocket cannot be reused in parts.

Blue Origin, the space company of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, was awarded the smallest contract for a total of seven launches. The missions will take place on the new heavy-duty rocket New Glenn, which lifted off for the first time in January 2025. It will also be reusable in parts in the future.

(acha)