United Launch Alliance (ULA) is an American launch service provider, a joint venture between Lockheed Martin Space and Boeing Defense, Space & Security. As a launch provider, ULA designs, assembles, sells, and launches rockets like the Atlas V and Vulcan Centaur, providing access to space for national security payloads, commercial satellites, and deep-space exploration missions. Its primary customers include the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA, and commercial entities. Key activities involve launch services, rocket development, and partnerships with organizations like NASA and ESA for various space missions.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
United Launch Alliance, Blue Origin, and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems collectively received $2,300,000,000 in Air Force funding to ensure their domestically produced commercial rockets can meet national security launch requirements.
Boeing and Lockheed Martin merged their launch operations and created United Launch Alliance, which operated as a monopoly from 2006 until 2015.
United Launch Alliance selected Blue Origin’s BE-4 engine in September 2018 to power the ULA Vulcan rocket.
The United States Air Force selected both Blue Origin’s New Glenn launch vehicle and ULA’s Vulcan rocket in October 2018 under its Launch Services Agreement contract.
United Launch Alliance selected the BE-4 engine for its Vulcan rocket in September 2018.
Blue Origin announced plans in June 2017 to build a BE-4 engine factory in Huntsville contingent on United Launch Alliance selecting the engine for its Vulcan rocket.
The Huntsville factory will build dozens of BE-4 engines per year for both ULA’s Vulcan and Blue Origin’s New Glenn vehicles.
The first Dream Chaser launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V is planned for no earlier than late 2020, contingent on vehicle development and ISS cargo needs.
Lockheed Martin and Boeing merged their launch businesses and created United Launch Alliance (ULA) in 2006, which then owned the U.S. military launch market exclusively until SpaceX sued the government in 2014 to be allowed to compete.
United Launch Alliance is developing the Vulcan Centaur with a first launch scheduled in 2021.
United Launch Alliance reduced its vehicle configurations from 41 to 18 by 2019-11-28.
United Launch Alliance had 41 different configurations among the Atlas V, Delta IV, and the now-retired Delta II as recently as two years before 2019-11-28.
The AEHF-4 satellite launched on 2018-10-17 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
Prior to Falcon 9 receiving Category 3 certification, United Launch Alliance was the only provider offering Category 3 vehicles for NASA missions other than Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus XL.
Team Indus’ Z-02 lander is being designed to be compatible with launch vehicles operated by Arianespace, SpaceX, and United Launch Alliance.
Two Vulcan launches in 2021 are needed for United Launch Alliance to obtain Air Force certification for military payloads.
United Launch Alliance won one of three Launch Service Agreement awards from the U.S. Air Force on 2018-10-10.
United Launch Alliance expects to perform the first launch of its next-generation Vulcan rocket in April 2021.
United Launch Alliance selected Blue Origin’s BE-4 engine for Vulcan’s first stage in a 2018-09-27 release.
United Launch Alliance president and CEO Tory Bruno said the company had already used a share of the 18 RD-180 engines for Air Force launches and retained some for potential orders before the 2022 deadline.