SpaceX CEO Elon Musk discusses U.S. space operations with NORAD commander U.S. Air Force Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy, and his deputy, Royal Canadian Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher Coates, in Colorado Springs, Colo., on April 15, 2019. U.S. Northern Command
Defense One: The Pentagon Is Increasingly Relying on Billionaires’ Rockets. And It’s OK with That.
Space Force leaders say carefully written contracts can prevent things like SpaceX’s about-face on Ukrainian satcomms.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado—The U.S. Space Force is not concerned about relying on mercurial billionaires to provide space capabilities, according to top service leaders.
The service’s ability to put large satellites in space rests primarily on the shoulders of Elon Musk, whose SpaceX test-flew a new heavy-lift rocket for the first time on Thursday, and Jeff Bezos, whose Blue Origin is slated to deliver engines to United Launch Alliance.
A potential problem is illustrated by Musk’s behavior toward Ukraine. In the months that followed Russia’s invasion, SpaceX donated some 20,000 of its satellite internet terminals and millions of dollars’ worth of service to the Ukrainian military. But in October, SpaceX wrote the Pentagon that it would cease its subsidy. Three months after that, Starlink officials said they had taken steps to hinder Ukraine’s use of the terminals on the battlefield; Musk declared, in apparent contradiction of Starlink’s work for the Pentagon, that the service was “never intended to be weaponized.” Ukrainian and Pentagon officials have said they would seek alternatives to Starlink.
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WNU Editor: It all comes down to cost. SpaceX has brought down the price of launching rockets by a factor of 10x. That saves the Pentagon hundreds of millions, if not billions, over the next few years.
9 comments:
They should fund the Chinese
Nice hair piece Elmo.
Assuming US launch sites are secure or intact, SX offers immense lift to any orbit the DOD needs and that margin grows with the super heavy to essentially unbounded lift numbers. SX is revolutionizing DOD access to space.
SPACEX WILL INNOVATE FASTER THAN THE GOVERNEMENT, THE GOVERNEMENT WILL INNOVATE, IT MUCH OF THE TI E IT IS SLOW.
At another site Musk was criticized for not using a flame trench or not waiting until a launchpad with a cooling system was installed.
The cooling system is a few months out. The rocket was more powerful than Space X or the US has used?
Musk did say there was like a 50% or did he say 60% that launch would fail. So no biggie. When they want to put up a military satellite they will use d a tried and true Space X rocket not a test bed rocket.
Elon have businesses in China. Excellent!
Lets not pretend that Tesla, SpaceX and all of the main competitors don't have closest ties to the Pentagon and Military Industrial Complex as it is. Same also with not so closely related but equally important providers such as Google/Alphabet, Facebook etc. All documented.
So close ties. and? The ties between government and 'private' are seamless.
now go purge
Should anyone rely on the Pentagon
Should anyone rely on the Russian Ministry of Defense
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