Moscow. July 27. INTERFAX-The private aerospace company SpaceX and the United Launch Alliance (ULA) enterprise will participate in a competition to launch 150 military satellites under the program of the Space Development Agency (AKR, a structural division of the US Department of Defense) at the end of 2024, according to the agency's website.
The agency plans to launch a large group of satellites into low-Earth orbit to create a "Transport Belt" by 2024. This year, the ACR will accept applications for sending satellites into orbit from these two companies as part of the second phase of the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program.
In December 2020, SpaceX received a $ 150.5 million contract to launch 28 satellites (20 data relay satellites and 8 missile strike warning satellites) in 2022 and 2023.
Earlier, the US Air Force Department chose to launch military and reconnaissance satellites into orbit in the period from 2022 to 2027. ULA received a contract worth $ 337 million to conduct 2 phase II missions, and SpaceX received $ 316 million for one mission in 2022.
Within the framework of these missions, companies must conduct integration studies, create a technical base for launching, a surveillance system, produce launch vehicles and provide conditions for the successful completion of their tasks.
