Launch competition

United Launch Alliance announced Monday it will not compete for a next-generation Global Positioning Satellite launch, pointing to congressional restrictions that bar the company from shoring up its engine supply.

Bids for the launch were due Nov. 16, and ULA indicated last month that the GPS III competition -- the first competitive national security space launch in more than a decade -- may be out of reach for the company due to congressional language in the Fiscal Year 2015 National Defense Authorization Act that limits its use of the Russian-made RD-180 engine, which powers its Atlas V launch vehicle.

ULA, a joint Lockheed Martin and Boeing venture, confirmed it will not bid in a Nov. 16 statement.

"ULA wants nothing more than to compete, but unfortunately we are unable to submit a compliant bid for GPS III-X launch services," according to the statement.

The statement reaches beyond the NDAA barrier, which the company and the Air Force had hoped would be softened in time for the launch, and points to other concerns with the competition structure. ULA says it does not have the appropriate accounting systems to certify that funds it receives from other government contracts would not benefit the GPS III launch mission -- a requirement detailed in the request for proposals. The company also claims that the contract's structure, which favors price over experience, devalues some of ULA's strongest advantages.

"The RFP's Lowest Price Technically Acceptable structure allows for no ability to differentiate between competitors on the basis of critical factors such as reliability, schedule certainty, technical capability and past performance," the company states.

Without a bid from ULA, the launch contract would presumably go to the only other certified, viable competitor, SpaceX. Neither the Air Force nor SpaceX have released a statement regarding ULA's announcement. However, the service emphasized to reporters during a media briefing in October that competition for this launch is a high priority.