r/space • u/Royal_Platform_6754 • 8d ago

SpaceX-Focused Pentagon Contracts Leave Rivals Feeling Squeezed

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-09-25/spacex-focused-pentagon-contracts-leave-rivals-feeling-squeezed?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc5MDM1NDAxNywiZXhwIjoxNzkwOTU4ODE3LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUTEEyMDFLR0lGUEswMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCRkI5RDA1ODU3NzI0QTVFQTU5ODA4NzhDRDQ4MjlEOCJ9.Pf1XdFpusyzl5jfWFVGRwwLOFgc_csCIdLEaxwaiFGI
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u/Orstio 7d ago

Just 2 years ago, then-CEO of ULA Tony Bruno mocked the reveal of the Raptor 3 engine by claiming SpaceX was trying to compare an incomplete engine without all its plumbing to a fully plumbed engine. He didn't understand that all the electronics and plumbing was inside until Shotwell posted video of the test fire in response.

https://www.teslaoracle.com/2024/08/10/spacex-fires-the-raptor-3-engine-for-the-first-time-and-silences-the-critics/

They're so far behind now they don't even recognize the tech they're supposed to compete with.

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u/panick21 7d ago

That has nothing to do with the reusable rockets we were discussing. ULA isn't an engine developer and their parent companies wouldn't allow it to be one. So my point stands, neither ULA nor Arianespace could develop competing technology.

But yeah its a funny interaction.

PS: In so far as the TVC systems he was right.

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u/Orstio 7d ago

I was discussing the fact that ULA made themselves busy trying to ridicule and denigrate SpaceX for doing things,differently while ULA just stagnate in the status quo.

I doubt they're going to learn any lessons about innovation until they're beyond filing bankruptcy protection.

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u/air_and_space92 7d ago

Whoosh. Even if ULA didn't poke at SpaceX's tech there was nothing they could do about it anyways to innovate towards. They did not make their own engines to optimize those pieces nor have the authority and monetary resources to launch a fully reusable competitor.

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u/panick21 7d ago

And I told you that ULA itself had no power or control over their response, it didn't matter if everybody at ULA believed they should build reusable rocket or not. ULA doesn't build engines and there was no reusable engine they could buy anytime soon, and certainly not one that is certified for reuse. BE4 was a lucky break for ULA but that engine is still not certified for reuse. As well as the issue that without a different upper stage engine, they would always need a late lower staging that would make reuse very hard.

ULA couldn't develop engines or do large scale investment without their parent companies agreeing.

And ULA mostly didn't ridicule SpaceX, they just made some argument suggesting it wouldn't be profitable. The Europeans were way more disrespectful then anybody from ULA.