Today: Feb 14, 2025

Blue Origin Secures Military Launch Contracts: US Space Force Opens $5.6 Billion Competition

8 months ago

Blue Origin Joins Ranks as Military Launch Contractor

After years of lobbying, protests, and intense competition, Jeff Bezos’s space company, Blue Origin, has finally secured a coveted spot as a military launch contractor.

The US Space Force announced on Thursday that Blue Origin will now compete alongside United Launch Alliance (ULA) and SpaceX for at least 30 military launch contracts over the next five years, valued at up to $5.6 billion.

This landmark decision is the first of two major contract awards the Space Force will make this year. The goal is to foster more competition among launch providers and reduce reliance on a few key players. For over a decade, ULA, formed from the merger of Boeing and Lockheed Martin’s rocket programs, was the sole company certified to launch the military’s most critical satellites. This changed in 2018 when SpaceX began launching national security satellites. Despite Blue Origin’s protests, the Pentagon chose ULA and SpaceX to continue these duties in 2020.

The National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program is responsible for selecting contractors to deliver military surveillance, navigation, and communications satellites into orbit. Over the next five years, the Space Force aims to leverage new launch capabilities from emerging space companies, adopting a novel procurement approach that divides contracts into two categories: Lane 1 and Lane 2.

Thursday’s announcement pertains to Lane 1, which covers less demanding missions to low-Earth orbit. These include smaller tech demos, experiments, and launches for the military’s new constellation of missile tracking and data relay satellites. This fall, the Space Force will award contracts for Lane 2, which involves launching the most sensitive national security satellites, requiring extensive certification and integration.

Out of seven bids for Lane 1, only three companies met the criteria: SpaceX, ULA, and Blue Origin. The basic requirement was demonstrating that their rockets could place at least 15,000 pounds of payload into low-Earth orbit. SpaceX proposed its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, ULA offered its Vulcan rocket, and Blue Origin proposed its New Glenn rocket, slated for its inaugural test flight by September.

Future Opportunities and Resiliency

Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen emphasized the importance of increasing competition and diversity as new providers develop their systems. The Space Force plans to offer annual opportunities for companies like Rocket Lab, Relativity Space, Firefly Aerospace, and Stoke Space to join the Lane 1 pool.

Panzenhagen noted that having additional launch providers will enhance the Space Force’s resilience in the face of growing competition with Russia and China. “Launching more risk-tolerant satellites on potentially less mature launch systems using tailored independent government mission assurance could yield substantial operational responsiveness, innovation, and savings,” she said.

The Space Force anticipates that more competition will lead to lower launch prices. SpaceX and Blue Origin rockets are partially reusable, and ULA plans to eventually reuse Vulcan main engines. Over the next five years, the Space Force’s Space Systems Command will issue fixed-price task orders for Lane 1 missions, including seven launches for the Space Development Agency’s missile tracking constellation and a mission for the National Reconnaissance Office.

Although Blue Origin’s New Glenn has yet to complete a successful orbital launch, it will receive $5 million for an initial capabilities assessment for Lane 1, with SpaceX and ULA each receiving $1.5 million for similar assessments. Blue Origin, SpaceX, and ULA are also leading contenders for the upcoming Lane 2 contracts, which require rigorous certification by October 2026. Blue Origin’s successful debut of New Glenn by the end of this year could make this deadline achievable.

This significant development marks a new chapter in the US Space Force’s efforts to ensure a competitive and resilient space launch industry, opening doors for Blue Origin and other emerging companies in the process.

Fabrice Iranzi

Journalist and Project Leader at LionHerald, strong passion in tech and new ideas, serving Digital Company Builders in UK and beyond
E-mail: iranzi@lionherald.com