U.S. Air Force sees next step for rocket launch contest by June
Source: Yahoo! News / Reuters
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force plans to ask satellite launch providers and engine makers next month or in early June to explain how they would partner up to develop a new launch vehicle powered by a U.S.-built engine, a top Air Force general said on Thursday.
General John Hyten, who heads Air Force Space Command, told Reuters the Air Force was finalizing its strategy for spending $220 million in funds set aside by Congress in the fiscal 2015 budget, and would issue a request for proposals soon.
Hyten said Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center aimed to publish the document by the end of May, but that might slip to early June since there was "a lot of work left to do."
The Air Force is racing to end reliance on the Russian-built RD-180 engine that powers the first stage of the Atlas 5 rocket built by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture run by Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co.
Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/u-air-force-sees-next-step-rocket-launch-230903354--finance.html
