United Launch Alliance

Prior to the creation of the United Launch Alliance, national defense launches were developed through the EELV program by Lockheed Martin and McDonnell Douglas. After initially being rejected from the bidding process, Boeing took on McDonnell Douglas' contract during its acquisition of the company in 1997.[9] Contrary to expectations of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, a strong competitive commercial market did not materialize. Estimated prices for future contracts increased, along with increases in program costs. The US Department of Defense unit costs estimates for launch services saw a 77% year on year increase from 2002 to 2003. This triggered a Nunn-McCurdy cost breach. New estimates to congress saw a further 29% unit cost increase, primarily due to a reduction in launch cadence. [10]

The early 2000s saw considerable turmoil within the Air Force space community and between the two EELV launch service providers. This was in part due to competition in the shrinking space launch industrial base, cost increases, and the growing need for reliable access to space. This turmoil culminated in civil and criminal fraud accusations brought against Boeing relating to the improper use of competitors' information and racketeering.[9][11]

The United States Department of Defense changed its acquisition strategy to one which would maintain assured access to space. Under the "Buy III" programme, all fixed costs were covered by the US government. At the same time it brought about a deal between the two major EELV contractors to combine their efforts into a single company.[12]

Boeing and Lockheed Martin announced their intent to form a 50-50 joint venture on 2 May 2005 aiming to consolidate the manufacture and development of US government expendable launch vehicles and launch services. The United Launch Alliance name was announced at the same time.[13] Annual savings were estimated to be $100-$150 million. SpaceX challenged the United States antitrust law legality of the launch services monopoly on October 23, 2005, creating a competition with reusable launch systems.[14] The Federal Trade Commission gave their anti-trust clearance on October 3, 2006.[15] The commission required ULA to:

(1) ULA cooperate on equivalent terms with all providers of government space vehicles;

(2) the space vehicle businesses of Boeing and Lockheed provide equal consideration and support to all launch services providers when seeking any U.S. government delivery in orbit contract;

and (3) Boeing, Lockheed, and ULA safeguard competitively sensitive information obtained from other providers of space vehicles and launch services. [16]

It was the FTC's opinion that due to the challenge of entering the government medium to heavy launch services market, the entry of SpaceX was unlikely to reverse the anti-competitive effects, resulting from the formation of ULA. [16] Its approval was on the basis that the benefits of assured access to space for national security, outweighed anticompetitive harms. [17]

The ULA merged the production and operation of the government space launch services of the two companies into one central plant in Decatur, Alabama, and merged all engineering into another central facility in Littleton, Colorado. Marketing and sales responsibilities for the Delta and Atlas launch vehicles was retained by the parent companies.[18]

ULA had a peak of seven space launch facilities during 2005–2011, including three Delta II launchpads. The Delta II sites were decommissioned starting in 2011.[19] Two years following company formation from units of Lockheed Martin and Boeing, ULA announced it would lay off 350 workers in early 2009, reducing from a company-wide employment of 4200 employees in 2008.[20] In the event, ULA had approximately 3900 employees by August 2009.[21] ULA joined the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) in June 2010 as an executive member. Michael Gass described ULA's membership as a "natural fit for us, and we are proud to do so".[22] By May 2014, ULA's membership of the CSF had lapsed. [23]

Michael Gass stepped down as ULA's CEO, in August 2014 and was replaced by Tory Bruno, former vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Strategic and Missile Defense Systems.[24] ULA entered into a partnership with Blue Origin in September 2014 to develop the BE-4 LOX/methane engine to replace the RD-180 on a new lower-cost first stage booster rocket. At the time, the engine was already in its third year of development by Blue Origin. ULA indicated then they expected the new stage and engine to start flying no earlier than 2019 on a successor to the Atlas V[25] A month later in October 2014, ULA announced a major restructuring of processes and workforce to decrease launch costs by half. The US GAO calculated the average cost of each ULA rocket launch for the US government had risen to approximately US$420 million in 2014.[26][27] One of the reasons given for the restructuring and new cost reduction goals was competition from SpaceX. ULA had less "success landing contracts to launch private, commercial communications and earth observation satellites" than it had with launching US military payloads. [28] CEO Tory Bruno stated in November 2014 that the structuring was intended to "lead to improvements in how ULA interacts with its customers, both governmental and commercial," shorten launch cycles, and cut launch costs in half again.[29] Part of that programme involved the development of a new rocket, Vulcan, initially with private funds, as one part of a solution for its problem of "skyrocketing launch costs".[30] CEO Tory Bruno believed the new lower-cost launcher could be competitive and succeed in the commercial satellite sector.[28] ULA intended to have preliminary design ideas in place for a blending of the Atlas V and Delta IV technology by the end of 2014,[31][32] but in the event, the high-level design was announced in April 2015.[33]

By March 2016 it had become clear that the new Vulcan launch vehicle would be developed with funding via a public–private partnership with the US government. By early 2016, the US Air Force had committed US$201 million of funding for Vulcan development. ULA has not "put a firm price tag on [the total cost of Vulcan development but ULA CEO Tory Bruno has] said new rockets typically cost $2 billion, including $1 billion for the main engine".[34] ULA had asked the US government in 2016 to provide a minimum of US$1.2 billion by 2020 to assist it in developing the new US launch vehicle.[34] It was unclear how the change in development funding mechanisms might change ULA plans for pricing market-driven launch services.[35] Since Vulcan development began in October 2014, the privately generated funding for Vulcan development has been approved only on a short term basis.[30][34] The ULA board of directors—composed entirely of executives from Boeing and Lockheed Martin—is approving development funding on a quarter-by-quarter basis.[36]ULA is transitioning to operating two launch pads, down from five in 2015.[37]

ULA announced in February 2015 that they were considering undertaking domestic production of the Russian RD-180 engine at the Decatur, Alabama rocket stage manufacturing facility. The US-manufactured engines would be used only for government civil (NASA) or commercial launches, and would not be used for US military launches.[38] This consideration was eventually abandoned following the passage of legislation permitting the continued purchase of the RD-180 from Russia. [39]

In May 2015, ULA stated that it would go out of business unless it won commercial and civil satellite launch orders to offset an expected slump in U.S. military and spy launches.[40] The same month, ULA announced it would decrease its executive ranks by 30 percent in December 2015, with the layoff of 12 executives. The management layoffs are the "beginning of a major reorganization and redesign" as ULA endeavours to "slash costs and hunt out new customers to ensure continued growth despite the rise of SpaceX".[41][42] In December 2016, ULA created an online pricing tool, Rocket Builder, that allowed potential customers and the public at large to estimate launch costs for the Atlas V rocket with configurable orbits, payloads and launch services. [43] Purchase price estimates were removed from the tool in 2018, due to the potentially commercially sensitive information it provided to ULA's competitors.[44]Despite ULA restructuring begun in 2014 to decrease launch costs by half,[45] the cheapest ULA space launch in early 2018 remained the Atlas V 401 at a price of approximately US$109 million.

In July 2017 ULA was awarded $191 million to launch STP-3 aboard a heavy-lift Atlas V 551.[46]

In January 2018, ULA took over marketing and sales responsibilities for Atlas V launches.[47] Dan Collins, ULA's inaugural Chief operating officer, retired in April 2018 and was replaced by John Elbon, former vice president and program manager at Boeing Defense, Space & Security. [48][49]

During the Coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, ULA implemented an internal pandemic plan. Whilst some aspects of launch related outreach were scaled back, the company made clear the intention to maintain its launch schedule.[50]

With the introduction of competition from lower-cost launch providers and the increasing costs of ULA launches year-over-year, increased attention has been paid to the amounts ULA has received for US government launch contracts, and for its annual government funding of $1 billion for launch capability and readiness. This readiness requirement included the maintenance of five launch pads and a number of variants of the Delta II, Delta IV, Delta IV Heavy, and Atlas V.[12]

ULA Launch Service Costs under the Block Buy (marketing publication)

As a result of increasing costs by ULA, in April 2012 the EELV program triggered a critical Nunn-McCurdy cost breach and a reassessment of the EELV program of which ULA were the sole participants.[9]

An uncontested US Air Force block-buy of 36 rocket cores for up to 28 launches, valued at $11 billion, awarded in Dec 2013, drew protest from competitor SpaceX. SpaceX has claimed the cost of ULA's launches are approximately $460 million each, and has proposed a price of $90 million to provide similar launches.[51] In response, former ULA CEO Michael Gass claimed an average launch price of $225 million, with future launches as low as $100 million.[52]

ULA released contract values to the public and CEO Tory Bruno testified before Congress in March 2015 that whilst ULA receives government subsidies "to conduct national security launches" the same is true of SpaceX who receive funding "to develop new capabilities and the use of low- or no-cost leases of previously developed launch infrastructure".[53] Challenges exist with launch costs values in trying to directly compare them since they are not necessarily calculated using the same cost model assumptions.[54]

A political controversy arose in March 2016 following public remarks by ULA VP of Engineering, Brett Tobey, that included comments that were "resentful of SpaceX" and dismissive of one of the two competitors (Aerojet Rocketdyne) for the new engine that will power the Vulcan launch vehicle currently under development.[55] Tobey resigned on March 16,[56] while ULA CEO Tory Bruno disavowed the remarks.[57] Senator John McCain asked the Defense Department to investigate the comments that implied the DoD may have shown "favoritism to a major defense contractor or that efforts have been made to silence members of Congress"[58] and the Secretary of Defense has requested the Inspector General to open an investigation of the controversy.[59][60]

Following the failure of a SpaceX Falcon 9 carrying Amos-6, incorrect reports circulated about potential corporate espionage by ULA.[61] These reports proved to be false when on 2 January, 2017, SpaceX released an official statement indicating that the cause of the failure was a buckled liner in several of the COPV tanks.[62]

In June 2017 Ars Technica analyzed a US Air Force budget and concluded that if ULA was selected for all the Air Force launches in year 2020 and 2021, the cost per launch would be on the order of $420 million.[63] ULA's CEO Tory Bruno described the analysis as "misleading"; in July the company was awarded $191 million single-launch contract to launch the STP-3 mission aboard the heavy-lift Atlas V 551.[46]

Atlas V[lower-alpha 1] is the fifth major version in the Atlas rocket family. It is an expendable launch system originally designed by Lockheed Martin.

Each Atlas V rocket consists of two main stages. The first stage is powered by a Russian RD-180 engine manufactured by RD Amross and burning kerosene and liquid oxygen. The Centaur upper stage is powered by one or two US RL10 engine(s) manufactured by Aerojet Rocketdyne and burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. AJ-60A strap-on solid rocket boosters (SRBs) are used in some configurations and will be replaced by GEM-63 SRBs in the near future. The standard payload fairings are 4 or 5 meters in diameter with various lengths.[71]

Delta IV is a group of five expendable launch systems in the Delta rocket family introduced in the early 2000s. Originally designed by Boeing's Defense, Space & Security division for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program, the Delta IV became a United Launch Alliance (ULA) product in 2006. The Delta IV was and is primarily a launch vehicle for United States Air Force military payloads, but has also been used to launch a number of U.S. government non-military payloads and a single commercial satellite.

The Delta IV originally had two main versions which allowed the family to cover a range of payload sizes and masses: the retired Medium (which had four configurations) and Heavy. As of 2019, only the Heavy remains active, with payloads that would previously fly on Medium moving to either the existing Atlas V or the forthcoming Vulcan. Retirement of the Delta IV is anticipated in 2024.

Vulcan is a heavy-lift launch vehicle under development by the United Launch Alliance (ULA) to meet the demands of the United States Air Force's National Security Space Launch (NSSL) competition and launch program. The rocket is ULA's first launch vehicle design, adapting and evolving various technologies previously developed for the Atlas V and Delta IV rockets of the USAF's EELV program. The first stage propellant tanks share the diameter of the Delta IV Common Booster Core, but will contain liquid methane and liquid oxygen propellants instead of the Delta IV's liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. Blue Origin's BE-4 engine was selected to power Vulcan's first stage in September 2018 after a competition with the Aerojet Rocketdyne AR1.[72]

Vulcan's upper stage will be the Centaur V, an upgraded variant of the Common Centaur/Centaur III currently used on the Atlas V. A lengthened version of the Centaur V will be used on the Vulcan Centaur Heavy.[73] Current plans call for the Centaur V to be eventually upgraded with Integrated Vehicle Fluids technology to become the Advanced Cryogenic Evolved Stage (ACES).[74] Vulcan is intended to undergo the human-rating certification process to allow the launch of crew, such as the Boeing Starliner or a future crewed version of Sierra Nevada Dream Chaser.[75]

Delta II was an expendable launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas and later built by Boeing prior to the formation of ULA. Delta II was part of the Delta rocket family and entered service in 1989. Delta II vehicles included the Delta 6000, and the two later Delta 7000 variants ("Light" and "Heavy"). The rocket flew its final mission ICESat-2 on 15 September 2018.

The first launch conducted by ULA was a Delta II from Vandenberg Air Force Base on December 14, 2006,[76] carrying USA-193 for the National Reconnaissance Office.[77][78][79][80] This satellite failed shortly after launch and was intentionally destroyed on February 21, 2008 by an SM-3 missile fired from the Ticonderoga class cruiser USS Lake Erie.[81] ULA's first Atlas V launch was in March 2007, an Atlas V variant 401 launching six military research satellites for Space Test Program (STP) 1. This mission also performed three burns of the Centaur upperstage, and the first three burn mission for Atlas V and its first commercial mission, COSMO-SkyMed was completed on behalf of Italy's Ministry of Defence three months later using a Delta II rocket.[78] On June 15, 2007, the engine in the Centaur upper stage of a ULA-launched Atlas V shut down early, leaving its payload – a pair of NROL-30 ocean surveillance satellites – in a lower than intended orbit.[82] The NRO declared the launch a success.[83]

2007 also saw ULA's first two interplanetary spacecraft launches using the Delta II (the Phoenix probe to Mars in August and the Dawn satellite to Vesta and Ceres in September),[84][85] the WorldView-1 satellite, also launched using a Delta II into low Earth orbit on behalf of DigitalGlobe, and the company's first launch to geostationary transfer orbit using an Atlas V 421 variant carrying the USA-195 (or WGS-1) communications satellite.[78][86] ULA's next mission, and tenth overall, was launching GPS IIR-17 into medium Earth orbit on a Delta II.[78] The company completed its first Delta IV launch using the Delta IV Heavy rocket to place a payload into geosynchronous orbit in November, followed by three more launches in December.[78]

2008 saw seven launches, including Atlas V's first from Vandenberg (from Space Launch Complex 3E) and five others by Delta II.[78] The Atlas launch carried NROL-28 in March,[87] and the GeoEye-1 satellite was orbited by a Delta II rocket in September.[88] ULA completed eight Delta II, five Atlas V, and three Delta IV launches in 2009.[78] The Delta II launches carried three Space Tracking and Surveillance System satellites over two launches, two Global Positioning System satellites,[89] and the NOAA-19 and WorldView-2 satellites,[90][91] as well as two space telescopes (Kepler and the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer).[78][92] The Atlas launches carried the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LCROSS) mission as part of the Lunar Precursor Robotic Program, which later intentionally crashed into the moon for science and found the existence of water;[93] more Atlas V launches in 2009 included Intelsat 14, WGS-2,[86] PAN, and a weather satellite as part of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP). The Delta IV rockets carried the NROL-26, GOES 14,[94] and WGS-3 satellites.[78][86]

Atlas V launches in 2010 deployed the Solar Dynamics Observatory, the first Boeing X-37B, the first Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite, and the NROL-41. The Delta II system placed the last COSMO-SkyMed, and Delta IV launches deployed the GOES 15, GPS Block IIF, and USA-223 satellites.[95][96] ULA completed eleven launches in 2011, including five by Atlas, three by Delta II, and three by Delta IV. The Atlas system orbited another Boeing X-37, two (NROL-34) signals intelligence satellites,[97] a Space-Based Infrared System (SBIS) satellite, and the Juno spacecraft and Curiosity rover.[95][98] The Delta II launches placed the SAC-D and Suomi NPP satellites,[99] as well as two spacecraft associated with NASA's GRAIL lunar mission. Delta IV launches carried the NROL-49, NROL-27,[100] and another GPS satellite.[95]

ULA's 2012 launches included six Atlas Vs and four Delta IVs. The Atlas system carried Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) and AEHF satellites, another Boeing X-37, the Intruder and Quasar satellites, and the Van Allen Probes. Delta IVs deployed GPS and WGS satellites (USA-233),[101][102] as well as NROL-25[103] and NROL-15 on behalf of the National Reconnaissance Office.[95][104] In 2013, the Atlas flew eight times.[105] The system launched the TDRS-11,[106] Landsat 8, AEHF-3, and NROL-39 satellites, as well as SBIS, GPS, and MUOS satellites, and MAVEN, NASA's space probe to Mars. Delta IV launches orbited the fifth and sixth Wideband Global SATCOM satellites (WGS-5 and WGS-6),[107] as well as NROL-65.[95][101][108] In 2014, ULA's Atlas V orbited the TDRS-12 communications satellite in January,[109] the WorldView-3 commercial satellite in August,[110] and the CLIO communications satellite during September–October.[111] Atlas rockets also carried the satellites DMSP-5D-3/F19, NROL-67, NROL-33, and NROL-35.[111] Delta IV rockets orbited GPS satellites and two Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program satellites, and in July, NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 was carried by a Delta II.[111] Orion's first test flight was launched by a Delta IV Heavy rocket in December 2014, as part of Exploration Flight Test 1.[112]

A Delta II rocket orbited a Soil Moisture Active Passive satellite in January 2015.[113] In March, an Atlas V rocket carried NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission spacecraft,[114] and a Delta IV rocket orbited the GPS IIF-9 satellite on behalf of the U.S. Air Force.[115] The U.S. Air Force's X-37B spaceplane was carried by an Atlas V rocket in May,[116] and a Delta IV orbited the WGS-7 satellite in July.[117] The fourth MUOS satellite was orbited by an Atlas V in September.[118] ULA's 100th consecutive successful liftoff was completed on October 2, 2015, when an Atlas V rocket orbited a Mexican Satellite System communications satellite on behalf of the Secretariat of Communications and Transportation.[112] The classified NROL-55 satellite was launched by an Atlas V rocket several days later.[119] Atlas V rockets launched GPS Block IIF satellites and the Cygnus cargo spacecraft in November and December, respectively.[120][121]

In 2016, Delta IV rockets carried the NROL-45 satellite and Air Force Space Command 6 mission in February and August, respectively.[122][123]

A launch of the Atlas V rocket on March 22, 2016, had a minor first-stage anomaly that led to shutdown of the first-stage engine approximately five seconds before anticipated. The Centaur upper stage was able to compensate by firing for approximately one minute longer than planned, using reserved fuel margin.[124] [125] Atlas V rockets carried MUOS-5 in June,[126] NROL-61 satellites in July,[127] and the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft in September.[128]

ULA launched multiple satellites in late 2016. The weather satellite Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R was carried in November,[129][130] as was the WorldView-4 imaging satellite.[131] In December, the Wideband Global SATCOM's eighth satellite (WGS-8) was launched on a Delta IV Medium rocket,[130][132] and an Atlas V carried the EchoStar XIX communications satellite on behalf of Hughes Communications.[133]

In March 2017, WGS-9 was orbited by a Delta IV.[134][135] Atlas V rockets carried NRO satellites,[136][137][138] TDRS-M,[139] and a Cygnus cargo capsule in 2017.[140] The weather satellite NOAA-20 (JPSS-1) was launched by a Delta II rocket in November.[141][142]

An Atlas V carried the SBIRS-GEO 4 military satellite in January 2018.[143] The Atlas V's launch of NASA's InSight to Mars in 2018 was the first interplanetary probe to depart from the US West Coast.[144] A Delta IV Heavy launched Parker Solar Probe, NASA's robotic spacecraft to visit and study the sun's outer corona, in August 2018.[145] It was also the Delta IV Heavy with a Star-48BV kick stage[146] and the highest ever spacecraft velocity.[147] The company launched the final Delta II rocket, carrying ICESat-2 from Vandenberg Air Force Base SLC-2 on 15 September 2018. This marks the last launch of a Delta family rocket based on the original Thor IRBM.[148] On August 22, 2019, ULA launched its last Delta IV Medium rocket for the GPS III Magellan project.[149] An Atlas V carried Boeing's Starliner Orbital Flight Test (OFT) mission for NASA in December 2019.[150]

In 2020, an Atlas V carried Solar Orbiter spacecraft, an international collaboration mission between the European Space Agency and NASA to provide a never-before-seen global view of the sun.[151] In March, an Atlas V also launched Advanced Extremely High Frequency 6 (AEHF-6), the first U.S. Space Force National Security Mission.[152][153]

ULA's Horizontal Integration Facility at CCAFS in February 2018

The company operates orbital launch sites at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, California.[154] In Florida, ULA has used Launch Complex 41 for Atlas V launches since its maiden flight in August 2002,[155][156] and Launch Complex 37 for Delta IV launches since the rocket's maiden flight in November 2002.[157][158] The company has three launch pads at Vandenberg, as of April 2017.[159] These include Launch Complex 2 for Delta II launches,[160] Launch Complex 3 for Atlas launches,[161][162] and Launch Complex 6 for Delta IV and Delta IV Heavy launches.[163][164] Space Launch Complex 2 is no longer in active use by ULA, since the retirement of the Delta II in September, 2018[160]

Launches from Cape Canaveral typically head east so satellites can get extra momentum from the rotation of the Earth as they head to other planets or an orbit over the equator. Vandenberg Air Force Base is the primary U.S. launch site to send satellites into polar orbits. Commercial and military spacecraft like imaging and weather satellites need to launch southward on a path to reach such an orbit to cover the entire globe from pole-to-pole.[165] However, ULA's Atlas V rocket launched NASA's InSight mission to Mars from the West Coast in 2018, the first interplanetary mission ever to do so.[166]

ULA has announced plans to reduce the number of launch pads in use from five in 2015 to only two by the early 2020s, as part of the company's transition from the Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles to the Vulcan Centaur.[37]

ULA's headquarters building in Centennial, Colorado

ULA's headquarters in Centennial, Colorado, are responsible for program management, rocket engineering, testing, and launch support functions.[167]

ULA's largest factory is 1.6 million square feet (150,000 m²) and located in Decatur, Alabama.[168] A factory in Harlingen, Texas, fabricates and assembles components for the Atlas V rocket.[169] In 2015, the company announced the opening of an engineering and propulsion test center in Pueblo, Colorado.[170]

The Spaceflight Processing Operations Center (SPOC), located near SLC-40 and SLC-41, is used to construct the mobile launcher platform for the Vulcan launch vehicle. It also serve as a storage room for the Atlas V MLP.[171]

On 6 August 2019, the first two parts of Vulcan's MLP were transported to the SPOC.[172]

Formerly known as Solid Motor Assembly and Readiness Facility (SMARF) during its support of the Titan IVB launch vehicle, it was renamed during Vulcan Centaur's topping ceremony on October 2019.[171]