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ORLANDO, Fl. (Reuters) – The US Air Force announced on Wednesday that it has awarded $ 2.3 billion worth of contracts for the development of rocket launch systems for military missions. national security.
FILE PHOTO: Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and Blue Origin, speaks to the media about the New Shepard rocket booster and the crew capsule mockup at the 33rd Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. / Photo of File
The awards go to Blue Origin from Amazon.com billionaire, Jeff Bezos; United Launch Services, part of the United Launch Alliance (ULA) joint venture between Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp .; and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems.
The three contracts are part of a Defense Ministry initiative to ensure permanent military access to space and reduce the need for foreign-made rocket engines, such as the ULA-launched Atlas V rocket. Russian-made RD-180 boosters. The contracts consist of developing rockets and transporting payloads in space.
United Launch Services, based in Centennial, Colorado, received $ 967 million to develop its Vulcan rocket; Blue Origin, of Kent, Washington, has received $ 500 million for the construction of its New Glenn amplifier, and Northrop Grumman, Arizona, for $ 791.6 million for its Omega rocket.
The Blue Origin and Northrop military launch vehicle prototypes are expected to be ready by the end of 2024 and ULA's Vulcan rocket development is expected to be completed by March 2025.
In a statement issued Wednesday after Wednesday's announcement, Blue Origin announced the construction of a launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, without specifying which rockets would launch from the site. In September, ULA announced that its Vulcan rocket would be powered by Blue's BE-4 liquid propellant rocket engines.
Reporting by Joey Roulette, edited by Peter Henderson and Rosalba O & # 39; Brien
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