Sunday, March 14, 2010

Cancelling return to Moon will raise satellite launch cost

Keith Stein
Examiner

Canceling NASA’s return to the moon program will likely raise the cost of launching satellites into space, Air Force officials told a congressional committee on Wednesday.

“Launch costs are still rising,” said Gary Payton, Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for Space Programs. Payton supports the Secretary of the Air Force with his responsibilities as the Service Acquisition Executive for Space Programs.

“Factors contributing to rising launch costs are the depletion of inventory purchased in prior years, reduced number of annual buys increasing unit costs, and a deteriorating subcontractor business base without commercial customers,” Payton told the Senate Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.

Read the full article HERE.

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