Space Force to hold launch enterprise industry day next month

By Courtney Albon / July 19, 2021 at 4:11 PM

The Space Force will meet with industry next month to discuss "innovative acquisition strategies" for future National Security Space Launch missions and to inform the planning process for the next phase of Launch Service Procurements.

In a notice released last week, the service says the Aug. 17 industry day will cover a range of NSSL topics, including its Phase 3 LSP strategy and strategies for incentivizing companies to develop medium and heavy launch capabilities.

The service will also meet with potential Phase 3 LSP providers, which could include any company with an existing or planned rocket that could carry an NSSL-class payload.

"The launch enterprise values our industry partnerships and looks forward to continued engagement resulting in the development of an innovative acquisition strategy to maintain assured access to space in a competitive and contested environment," the notice states.

The Space Force in November 2020 issued a request for information seeking industry input to help shape its strategy for future launch services procurements. The RFI sought details on how industry is thinking about the next wave of launch capabilities and how the service can leverage that vision in its own planning.

The service in August 2020 selected United Launch Alliance and SpaceX to split a five-year NSSL manifest for LSP Phase 2 and expects to begin making awards for Phase 3 in fiscal year 2025.

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