A top U.S. Air Force general on Tuesday said he favored competition for military rocket launches, but insisted the Air Force must stick to its high standards in certifying the Falcon 9 rocket, built by privately-held Space Exploration Technologies. SpaceX is working through a detailed certification process with the Air Force for its Falcon 9 satellite so it can compete with United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture of Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp, to launch a National Reconnaissance Office spy satellite."Like every American, I love competition ... I root for SpaceX to come into the competition," General John Hyten, commander of Air Force Space Command, told the annual Air Force Association conference. But he also said the United States could not afford to lose any satellite given the fragile state of most systems, outside of the Global Positioning System satellites.The company has also sued the Air Force to get a larger share of the 36 launches now promised to ULA.He said the U.S. military lost the ability to put satellites in space in the 1980s and again in the late 1990s, resulting in what he called "huge voids" in U.S. military capabilities, and could not afford to put itself in that position once again.
The Boeing Company (Boeing) is an aerospace company. Shares of BA traded higher by 0.97% or $1.22/share to $127.53. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $113.26 and as high as $144.57. On average, 4344260 shares of BA exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 2059704.
Lockheed Martin Corporation is a global security and aerospace company engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of technology systems and products. Shares of LMT traded higher by 1.28% or $2.24/share to $177.84. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $121.52 and as high as $177.19. On average, 1195490 shares of LMT exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 773407.
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