This is Blue Origin’s first attempt to secure military contracts after “several years of lobbying.” NSSL’s contract strategy is divided into two groups: Band 1 for less complex low-Earth orbit missions and Band 2 for high-priority national security satellites. Under newly awarded Lane 1 contracts, Blue Origin’s New Glenn, SpaceX Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets and ULA Vulcan will offer small technology samples and rocket tracking satellites.
The inclusion of Blue Origin is expected to increase competition and reduce launch costs as the Space Force looks to “diversify” its launch capabilities. The Lane 1 program’s initial missions include seven launches for the U.S. Space Development Agency satellite constellation. Blue Origin will also receive $5 million for an initial capability assessment, while SpaceX and ULA will each receive $1.5 million for a similar assessment.
Source: Ferra
I am a professional journalist and content creator with extensive experience writing for news websites. I currently work as an author at Gadget Onus, where I specialize in covering hot news topics. My written pieces have been published on some of the biggest media outlets around the world, including The Guardian and BBC News.
