Rocket launch

Boeing and Lockheed Martin have entered into an agreement to create a joint venture that will combine the production, engineering, test and launch operations associated with US government launches of Boeing Delta and Lockheed Martin Atlas rockets.

According to a statement, the joint venture, named United Launch Alliance, will reduce the cost of meeting the critical national security and NASA expendable launch vehicle needs of the United States.

“Both of our companies have developed versions of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) in collaboration with the Air Force and have flown them successfully,” said Boeing President, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer James A. Bell. “By joining together we are convinced that we can provide the customer with assured access to space at the lowest possible cost while ensuring enhanced reliability by eliminating duplicate infrastructure and bringing experts from both companies to focus on mission assurance.”

United Launch Alliance will be structured as a 50-50 joint venture, combining services currently provided separately by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems’ Expendable Launch Systems division and by Lockheed Martin’s Space Systems Company, for launches of each company’s respective rockets. Based upon initial estimates, annual savings to the government resulting from the combination are expected to be approximately $100 to $150 million.