United Launch Alliance – Spaceflight Now

Delta 4-Heavy countdown aborted moments before launch

December 9, 2018

A dramatic automatic abort 7.5 seconds before the planned liftoff of a United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket Saturday night kept the towering launcher on the pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, with a top secret spy payload for the National Reconnaissance Office.

Photos: Delta 4-Heavy poised for launch with U.S. spy satellite

December 8, 2018

A United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket stands 233 feet tall at Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, ready for liftoff Saturday night carrying a top secret U.S. government spy satellite into orbit.

Live coverage: Delayed flight of ULA’s heavy-lift rocket set for Tuesday night

December 7, 2018

United Launch Alliance has rescheduled the launch of a Delta 4-Heavy rocket from California for Tuesday at 5:57 p.m. PST (8:57 p.m. EST; 0157 GMT Wednesday), 10 days after a technical problem aborted a countdown less than 10 seconds before liftoff. The heavy-lift rocket will send a top secret National Reconnaissance Office spy payload into orbit.

Atlas 5 rocket begins arriving in Florida for commercial crew test flight

October 24, 2018

The Centaur upper stage destined to send Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner crew capsule into orbit on its first unpiloted test flight next year has arrived at Cape Canaveral after a sea journey aboard United Launch Alliance’s Mariner transport ship.

Photos: Atlas 5 rocket lifts off with Air Force’s AEHF 4 satellite

October 18, 2018

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket fired into the night sky over Cape Canaveral just after midnight Wednesday, carrying the U.S. Air Force’s fourth AEHF communications satellite designed to enable secure voice, video and data links between U.S. and allied forces.

Air Force’s fourth AEHF communications satellite successfully launched from Florida

October 17, 2018

A $1.8 billion U.S. Air Force communications satellite rode a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket into orbit Wednesday from Cape Canaveral, joining three similar craft perched more than 22,000 miles above Earth to ensure government leaders can remain in contact with military commanders in the worst-case scenario of nuclear war.

Video: Atlas 5 rocket blasts off with AEHF 4 satellite

October 17, 2018

The U.S. Air Force’s fourth Advanced Extremely High Frequency spacecraft launched Wednesday from Cape Canaveral on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, expanding the reach of the military’s most secure, jam-resistant satellite communications network.

Live coverage: Atlas 5 rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral

October 16, 2018

United Launch Alliance’s 50th mission for the U.S. Air Force lifted off at 12:15 a.m. EDT (0415 GMT) Wednesday. An Atlas 5 rocket launched from Cape Canaveral with the Air Force’s fourth Advanced Extremely High Frequency communications satellite.

ULA, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman share Air Force rocket funding

October 16, 2018

The U.S. Air Force has committed $109 million in funding to advance development of new rockets designed by United Launch Alliance, Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman, leaving out SpaceX in a government investment round that will lead to the military’s selection of two long-term launch providers in late 2019 or 2020.

Launch timeline for Atlas 5’s AEHF 4 mission

October 16, 2018

A United Launch Atlas 5 rocket is set to launch the U.S. Air Force’s fourth Advanced Extremely High Frequency communications satellite from Cape Canaveral. This timeline shows the major mission events planned over a three-and-a-half-hour flight to an optimized geostationary transfer orbit.