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| Science & Technology |
| With ULA’s new rocket Vulcan behind schedule, Space Force agrees to let Atlas 5 fill in |
| 2021-05-21 |
| [SpaceNews] The mission known as USSF-51 was switched from Vulcan to Atlas 5 at ULA's request What would have been the first national security mission for United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur rocket will be flown by Atlas 5, the company confirmed May 19. That mission, known as USSF-51, was awarded to ULA in August 2020 and is scheduled to launch in late 2022. The company had bid its newly developed Vulcan to fly that mission but the vehicle is not going to be ready on time. As a result, the Space Force agreed to allow ULA to launch USSF-51 on the company’s legacy vehicle the Atlas 5. ULA on Aug. 7 received a $337 million contract to launch USSF-51 and USSF-106, scheduled for late 2022 and mid 2023, respectively. The Space Force on that day announced that ULA and SpaceX were selected to launch military and intelligence agency satellites in a five-year deal known as National Security Space Launch Phase 2. ULA’s Vulcan won 60% of the Phase 2 missions, and SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy won 40%. |
| Posted by:3dc |
| #2 There are currently enough RD-180 engines in ULA's inventory for more Atlas flights than are scheduled. It's unlikely the remaining engines will simply be scrapped. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2021-05-21 08:28 |
| #1 The engines in the Vulcan come from Blue Origin. So a late Amazon delivery? |
| Posted by: 3dc 2021-05-21 08:08 |