Noozhawk.com:

The Department of Defense awarded Space Exploration Technologies a pair of missions that will involve two rocket launches from Vandenberg Air Force Base for the military’s next-generation of space-based tools for warfighters.

The announcement in the final hours of 2020 put the firm-fixed-price contract cost for SpaceX at $150,450,000.

The first launch will occur in September 2022, and the second mission will take place no later than March 31, 2023, to complete putting the constellation in space, according to the award by the Space Development Agency in Washington, D.C.

Last week’s contract award came as Vandenberg saw a slower-than-normal year in 2020 for rocket launches, which can provide an economic boost in local communities as workers and spectators fill hotel rooms and eat at restaurants.

The DOD announcement last week culminated the competition for a launch provider to carry the Tranche 0 Transport and Tracking Layer space vehicles…

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