The U.S. Space Force’s (USSF) Space Systems Command (SSC) at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., assigned 21 launches in the next two to three years for the fiscal 2024 National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 2–the fifth and final assignments for Phase 2, SSC said on Oct. 31.

United Launch Alliance (ULA) received 11 of the missions, while SpaceX received 10. Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Boeing [BA] are part of ULA.

“Over the five-year Phase 2 contract, we will have ordered a total of 48 missions, a significant increase over the 34 missions originally estimated leading up to Phase 2,” Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen, SSC’s program executive officer for assured access to space, said in an Oct. 31 SSC statement.  “The increase in launch tempo is a clear reminder of how vital space-based capabilities are in providing our warfighters and our nation’s decision-makers with the information needed to stay ahead of and to deter adversarial forces.”

SSC has assigned ULA the GPS III-9 mission and SpaceX the GPS III-10 mission. Both ULA and SpaceX are to execute launches for the Space Force, National Reconnaissance Office and the Space Force’s Space Development Agency. They include the GPS IIIF-1 assignment to ULA and the USSF-57 assignment to SpaceX.

“The GPS III-9 and GPS III-10 missions are the final projected GPS III missions,” SSC said. “The GPS IIIF-1 is the first launch of the follow-on GPS III satellites.  GPS Block IIIF introduces several improvements and novel capabilities compared to previous GPS satellite blocks.  USSF-57 will launch the first of three [Lockheed Martin] Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared GEO (NGG) satellites.”

SSC, in its new “dual lane approach,” wants an additional launch provider beyond SpaceX and ULA for NSSL’s Phase 3, which is to start in fiscal 2025 (Defense Daily, Oct. 5).

In July, Frank Calvelli, the assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration, said that the heart of the “dual-lane” Phase 3 NSSL strategy is making the U.S. “space architecture more resilient so it can be counted on during times of crisis and conflict.”

ULA used its trusted Atlas V to launch the first two Amazon Project Kuiper commercial satellites on Oct. 6 and wants to receive test flight certification for the Centaur V upper stage of its new Vulcan rocket this year.

Col. Douglas Pentecost, SSC’s assured access to space deputy program executive officer, said in September that delays in the

test flight certification of the Centaur V upper stage will not result in any extra launches for SpaceX in NSSL Phase 2 (Defense Daily, Sept. 8).

“In the event of schedule delays, the government will assess the situation and determine a path forward with the Launch Service Provider,” Pentecost said. “The Phase 2 contract includes mechanisms used to deal with schedule delays caused by either the contractor or the government.”

The first Vulcan mission is to be USSF-106 next summer.

In June, SSC assigned 12 NSSL missions to SpaceX and ULA–six for each provider–under the fiscal 2023 NSSL Phase 2 Launch Service Procurement contract (Defense Daily, June 8).