[Rockitz]

ULA has other existing launch contracts from the government since it's been sole source for DoD flights since the early 2000s. SpaceX almost certainly would have protested based on that provision had ULA bid and received the award. The accounting bill to prove that provision could easily bankrupt ULA. Personally, I think it was a savvy move by ULA. In rockets, you get what you pay for in terms of reliability. SpaceX is a long way from being a reliable provider of launch services as we recently observed on the F20 failure.

[Carry_Okie]

In rockets, you get what you pay for in terms of reliability. SpaceX is a long way from being a reliable provider of launch services as we recently observed on the F20 failure.

I was in MIL-STD-883 hybrid manufacturing, for both high-power and microwave modules. Those companies made MUCH more money on paperwork than we did on products so poorly conceived from a mechanical perspective I'm amazed that anything flies, including the missiles for which they were built. As far as I am concerned, military electronics procurement is a total disaster that benefits only the paper-pushers.