Orbital ATK [OA] purchased additional insurance coverage under its existing plan for Virginia-owned property at NASA’s Wallops Island Flight Facility after an insurance gap among the three parties caused the civil space agency to pay for damages resulting from Orbital ATK’s Antares launch failure.

Orbital ATK Staff Vice President for Government Relations Kate Kronmiller told sister publication Defense Daily Nov. 12 the additional coverage for the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), the Virginia-owned pad at Wallops, cost the company in the area of “tens of thousands” of dollars. Kronmiller said NASA told Orbital ATK it would not pay for future repairs of NASA property at Wallops Island resulting from damage caused from commercial spaceflight activity. NASA increased its sole source contract with Orbital ATK to cover a $5 million gap after NASA and the Virginia Commercial Spaceflight Authority (VCSFA) discussed who was responsible for the remaining balance, according to NASA’s inspector general.

Orbital ATK spokesman Barry Beneski said Nov. 12 the company’s insurance coverage previously covered Orbital ATK, NASA and federal government assets while VCSFA handled insurance covering commonwealth property in its own way. MARS is considered Virginia property at a federal facility.

The NASA IG said in a recent report that the insurance VCSFA had at the time of the Antares failure covered damage from aircraft and aviation operations but not spacecraft and launch vehicles, leaving the $5 billion balance for MARS repairs. VCSFA Deputy Executive Director Zigmond Leszczynski did not return a request for comment Nov. 12 and a request for comment left with VCSFA Executive Director Dale Nash was also not returned.

Beneski said, moving forward, Orbital ATK’s insurance includes Virginia property. Beneski declined to say how much the company paid for the extra insurance coverage and how much additional monetary coverage it provided. He also declined to say who provides Orbital ATK’s insurance for MARS, but did say it was part of a consortium with a lead underwriter. Beneski did say that Orbital ATK’s insurance will not cover its upcoming NASA Cargo Resupply Services (CRS) mission from Kennedy Space Center because the mission will take place on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket.

Kronmiller said she worked for Space Services Inc., which helped the House Science Committee write the original Commercial Space Launch Act (CSLA) in the early 1980s. She said when the first CSLA was written, lawmakers didn’t imagine that a state-owned pad would be involved.

NASA spokeswoman Stephanie Schierholz on Nov. 12 pointed to the civil space agency’s response to NASA IG for comment. In its response, NASA said procedures are in place for reviewing financial protection agreements such as the agreement between NASA and VCSFA. NASA said the insurance policies obtained by Orbital ATK and VCSFA did, in fact, fully comply with the requirements of the agreement, that there was no requirement for VCSFA to obtain commercial insurance covering its own property during launch operations.

NASA told NASA IG damage to NASA property was covered by Orbital ATK’s commercial insurer and the agency was not liable for damage to VCSFA property. NASA said the agency was not required to contribute funds to the recovery effort at MARS, but rather made an appropriate programmatic and policy-based decision to do so.

The Army on Nov. 12 morning successfully demonstrated the ability of its Integrated Air and Missile Defense (AIAMD) system to identify, track and destroy an incoming cruise missile.

Just before 10:30 am at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, a cruise missile surrogate target was intercepted by a Patriot Advanced Capability Three (PAC-3) missile defense battery using composite tracking data from both Sentinel and Patriot radars. The AIAMD allows for several radars and missile systems to link to a network that takes data from the first signal of an incoming threat and then fires a missile interceptor from the “best shooter.” Effectively, it aims to integrate an alphabet soup of systems with lengthy acronyms into a scalable, modular web of sensors and missile interceptor batteries linked to a single network with central command and control.

The PAC-3 interceptor is not new to the Army. It is the backbone of the Army’s ballistic missile defense system. What AIAMD introduces is a modular, open architecture system that can accept multiple radars and missile batteries and link them to advanced command and control systems. The Army calls it a shift from “system-centric” missile defense acquisition to a “component-based approach” to maintaining a “plug-and-fight” capability.

Northrop Grumman [NOC] is the IBCS prime contractor for the IBCS while Raytheon [RTN] builds and is responsible for the adaptation of the Patriot Radar.

The Nov. 12 test involved an MQM-107 Streaker target drone playing the role of an incoming cruise missile that flew in low toward an area defended by an AIAMD task force. The air defenses included the Army’s battalion engagement operations center (BN EOC) and several Patriot batteries and missile-defense radars–a non-collocated Battery EOC with a Patriot radar, a remote IFCN Relay connected to two Patriot PAC-3 Launchers and two remote Sentinel radars connected to IFCN Relays–operating together on an integrated fire control network (IFCN).

“This test demonstrated the Army’s capability to identify, track, engage and kill a target using an interceptor from one Air Defense System and remote sensors from another Air Defense System operating on the Integrated Fire Control Network (IFCN) under the control of the IAMD Battle Command System (IBCS),” the Army said in a statement.  

The low-altitude trajectory of the target obscured it from the Patriot radar’s field of view, but the IBCS system correctly used the Sentinel composite tracking data to calculate the necessary engagement solution resulting in the PAC-3 missile successfully engaging and killing the target. 

AIAMD allows integration of various launchers, sensors and interceptors into an open network, which gives the Army the ability to constantly upgrade its systems and/or scale a missile defense system to the facility or area that needs protection from incoming missiles.

AIAMD provides for the movement of critical information and decision aids from missile defense sensors and weapons to the decision-maker supporting the AMD mission objectives. The IBCS EOC provides the common mission command capability, as well as the plug-and-fight kits, including fire-control connectivity that enables distributed operations.

The head of a commercial space trade group is confident President Barack Obama will sign into law the commercial space launch bill that passed the House the evening of Nov. 16.

Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) President Eric Stallmer said Nov. 16 in an email after the vote that he “absolutely” believed Obama would sign the bill as the White House is “very supportive” of it. The bill now arrives on the president’s desk, where he has 10 days, not including Sundays, to decide whether to sign the bill or send it back to the House for changes. The White House did not return a request for comment by press time Nov. 17.

The Senate-passed substitute amendment to H.R. 2262 renamed the legislation the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness bill and merged agreed-upon provisions based on previously passed bills in the Senate and House. The bill passed the Senate on November 10.

Though the bill passed unanimously by voice vote, one key lawmaker had concerns about the bill. House Science, Space and Technology (SST) Ranking Member Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) said Nov. 17 via a spokeswoman the bill takes a “fundamentally unbalanced” approach to the issues facing the commercial space launch industry and is heavily skewed towards industry’s desires.

Johnson said her concerns include the bill prohibiting the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) from proposing any passenger safety regulations for eight years and requiring spaceflight passengers to waive liability against launch providers and other parties, which Johnson said negatively affects the rights of individuals on important safety matters. This, she said, means that spaceflight passengers have to waive their rights to sue the launch provider and related parties for claims, even if there is negligence involved.

Johnson also said she was concerned with how the bill imposes a new federal jurisdiction on states without a single congressional hearing to see if there would be unintended consequences. The bill also contains a provision on space resource exploration and utilization that, ostensibly, would enable the development of a commercial asteroid mining and exploitation industry, Johnson said. She said though Democratic committee members see great potential in commercial space resource utilization, they are opposed to its inclusion on the grounds that it is premature and raises numerous unresolved legal, policy and constitutional issues.

The bill directs the Transportation Secretary to evaluate the methodology used to calculate the maximum probable loss and, if necessary, develop a plan to update that methodology to ensure that the federal government is not exposed to greater costs than intended and that launch companies are not required to purchase more insurance coverage than necessary. The bill also extends indemnification for commercial launches from Dec. 31, 2016, to Sept. 30, 2025.

The bill provides a four-year extension of the International Space Station (ISS) until at least 2024 by directing the NASA administrator to take all necessary steps to ensure ISS remains a viable and productive facility capable of utilization, according to a statement from House SST Committee.

The bill also provides an extension of the regulatory learning period through Sept. 30, 2023, so that the commercial space sector can continue to mature and innovate before the Transportation Department transitions to a regulatory approach.

Commercial space advocates were generally supportive of the bill.   

United Launch Alliance (ULA) followed through on its recent threat by not submitting a bid for the Air Force’s first competed space launch mission in years, a Global Positioning System III (GPS III) launch slated for 2018.

ULA spokeswoman Jessica Rye, on the evening of Nov. 16, cited a variety of reasons for the company not bidding for GPS III. Rye said ULA does not have the accounting systems in place to certify that funds from other government contracts would not benefit the GPS III launch mission. She said the Air Force’s request for proposals (RFP) required this certification.

Rye also said the RFP’s lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) 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. ULA citing LPTA is surprising as the Air Force said in a Sept. 30 statement it would evaluate proposals through a competitive, best-value source selection process.

Rye also cited what ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno said recently: that ULA didn’t have enough Russian-developed RD-180 engines for its Atlas Vs available to bid and, therefore, was unable to submit a timely proposal. Bruno, in his October announcement, likely hoped encouraging the Air Force to enact a national security waiver to enable additional RD-180s to be purchased would allow competition in the GPS III launch, a major service initiative.

Bruno also threw out the option of getting more RD-180s legislatively as the fiscal year 2016 defense authorization bill was being negotiated at the time, but that effort fell through. Rye did not respond to an additional request for comment by press time Nov. 17.

“ULA wants nothing more than to compete,” Rye said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we are unable to submit a compliant bid for the GPS III launch services.”

ULA’s exit from the launch competition leaves only one other company certified to perform national security space launches—Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX). Company spokesman John Taylor on Nov. 17 declined to comment for this story, citing company policy of not disclosing bids. But an industry source on Nov. 17 expected SpaceX to respond to the RFP.

Launch services include launch vehicle production, mission integration and launch operations, according to an Air Force statement. This will be a standalone contract and is the first of nine competitive launch services planned in the FY ’16 budget request under the current “Phase 1A” procurement strategy, which covers awards with FY ’15-17 funding. The next solicitation for launch services will be for a second GPS III mission.

SpaceX in May was certified for national security launches, resulting in two launch service providers. The Air Force did not respond to requests for comment by press time Nov. 17. ULA is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Boeing [BA].

Raytheon [RTN] completed three preliminary launch readiness exercises for the Global Positioning System (GPS) III satellites, milestones needed in preparation for launch into orbit, the company said Nov. 19.

The exercises were completed over the summer and “demonstrated the maturity and readiness” of Raytheon’s Launch and Checkout Systems (LCS) to support GPS III satellite launches, the company said in a statement.

The LCS is part of the company’s Next-Generation Operational Control System (GPS OCX) and handles the full range of operation and procedures for the launch and early checkout of GPSIII satellites.

GPS III is part of the U.S. Air Force-led GPS Modernization Program meant to result in new positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities for U.S. military and civilian users of the GPS system.

Raytheon explained which aspects of LCS the exercises tested. The first exercise demonstrated capabilities needed to deploy GPS III satellites during launch and checkout such as transferring orbits in space, configuration procedures, and an ability to handle anomalies the satellite could meet in space.

The second exercise, for the first time, demonstrated an ability to switch contacts among multiple simulated U.S. Air Force Satellite Control network ground sites during the launch and early orbit checkout period. The switching is necessary for commanding the satellites and determining orbits as the move around Earth.

The final exercise demonstrated first acquisition of the space vehicle after launch, transfer orbit configurations, simultaneous contacts, and handoffs from multiple simulated Air Force Space Command Network (AFSCN) sites.

“The use of multiple preliminary events represent a novel, iterative development approach to replace the more traditional use of a few large exercises to test many new capabilities all at once,” Matt Gilligan, vice president of Raytheon Navigation and Environmental Solutions, said in a statement.

“Holding more frequent, smaller events exercises system maturity and provides the opportunity for GPS teams from different parts of the enterprise to stay current on developing technology,” Gilligan added.

Raytheon also highlighted GPS OSX generally and LCS specifically are cyber-hardened and “will help ensure that the system can meet evolving cyber threats.”

“These events demonstrate the growing maturity and readiness of Raytheon’s ground system to support the launch of GPS III satellites. LCS includes the cyber-hardened infrastructure for incorporating the remaining OCX mission applications, and represents a significant risk reduction for the overall program,” Gilligan said.

Raytheon is developing GPS OCX under a contract for the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, replacing the current GPS operational control system. OCX Launch and Checkout systems provide an early delivery of the system’s capabilities necessary to support6 GPS III launches, Raytheon said.

LCS is undergoing qualification testing in preparation for delivery to the Air Force.

The Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) is working toward providing the Air Force RD-180 relief in the form of additional national security waivers, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said Nov. 19.

Lawmakers are working on their omnibus spending bill for the remainder of fiscal year 2016. The current continuing resolution (CR) expires in December. Shelby is on the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) did not respond to the Air Force’s request for proposals for the service’s first competed launch in years: a Global Positioning System III (GPS III) launch slated for 2018. ULA spokeswoman Jessica Rye cited a variety of reasons, including insufficient number of Russian-developed RD-180s due to restrictions placed in the FY ’15 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that limits the purchase of additional engines.

ULA CEO and President Tory Bruno in October warned the Air Force that it wouldn’t bid for the GPS III launch, unless it received legislative relief or if the service exercised a national security waiver, allowing it to buy additional RD-180s. The Air Force declined to execute the national security waiver.

Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Nov. 19 weighed in on ULA not bidding for the GPS III launch, saying he was unhappy with the company’s absence. ULA’s absence left the door open for a sole source contract to Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX). An industry source expected the company to bid for the contract. SpaceX has a company policy on not disclosing bids ahead of award.

“We have spent some $300 million per year to…keep them in business and then the first chance they get, they bail out,” McCain said. “That’s very concerning.”

McCain spokesman Dustin Walker said Nov. 19 the FY ’16 defense authorization bill, which awaits the president’s signature, requires the Air Force to eliminate the currently structured Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) launch capability contract (ELC) arrangement for all launches purchased after FY ’17. Walker said, however, given that ULA has not decided not to participate in the GPS III launch competition, the senator has questions about the appropriateness of the ELC arrangement if ULA is abstaining from providing launch capabilities.

From 2006-2013, the Defense Department had two types of contracts with ULA, which at the time was the only certified provider of national security space launches. According to early 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) briefing slides, one contract was a cost-plus-incentive-fee ELC, which was for ULA to be ready to launch when the Air Force required. The second contract was a firm-fixed-price EELV launch services contract (ELS) for the actual launch services.

Though McCain is not an appropriator, he proposed eliminating ULA’s ELC contract. McCain is also a historic critic of Boeing [BA], which serves with Lockheed Martin [LMT] as the ULA joint venture. 

“We have stopped, for next year, this maintenance money we were paying them to stay in business,” he said. “Now I think we ought to eliminate it for this year.”

ULA did not respond to requests for comment by press time.

NASA on Nov. 20 said it ordered the first Commercial Crew launch from Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX).

This is is the second in a series of four guaranteed orders NASA will make under the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contracts. Boeing [BA] received its first crew mission order in May. Each contract includes a minimum of two and a maximum of six missions.

Determination of which company will fly its mission to the International Space Station (ISS) first will be made at a later time. The contracts call for orders to take place before certification to support the lead time necessary for missions in late 2017, provided the contractors meet readiness conditions. Commercial Crew missions to ISS, on Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, will restore the United States’ human spaceflight capabilities and increase the amount of time dedicated to scientific research aboard the orbiting laboratory.

SpaceX’s crew transportation system, including the Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket, has advanced through several development and certification phases. The company recently performed a critical design review (CDR), which demonstrated the transportation system has reached a sufficient level of design maturity to work toward fabrication, assembly, integration and test activities.

In its press release, NASA warned Congress that if it does not receive the full requested funding for Commercial Crew in fiscal year 2016 and beyond, it will be forced to delay future milestones for both U.S. companies and continue its sole reliance on Russia to transport U.S. astronauts to ISS.