“… 3 … 2 … 1 …”
It was the final countdown Tuesday for the United Launch Alliance’s Delta program as the last Delta IV Heavy rocket lifted off the launch pad.
The Decatur-built rocket ended a 60-year program as it carried the NROL-70 satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla.
“Thank you to our teammates past and present for their dedication to these critical national security missions,” said Gary Wentz, ULA vice president of Government and Commercial Programs. “The Delta IV Heavy rocket was a workhorse for the NRO, launching 12 missions delivering critical national security payloads.
“The NROL-70 mission marked our 35th successful launch with the NRO and we look forward to continuing our partnership launching future national security space missions.”
But a new era dawns for the American space program as it heralds the future of heavy lift with ULA’s next generation Vulcan rocket.
“The Delta rocket played a pivotal role in the evolution of space flight since the 1960s,” said Tory Bruno, ULA’s president and CEO. “This final Delta mission signals ULA’s evolution to the new Vulcan rocket, providing even higher performance than our three-core Delta IV Heavy rocket in a single-core rocket to launch heavy-class missions for the nation.
“We will continue to deliver our superior reliability and unprecedented orbital precision for all our customers across the national security, civil and commercial markets.”
ULA’s next launch is the Crew Flight Test mission for Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew program. The launch is planned for no earlier than May 6.
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