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SpaceX now offers vertical integration. And the difference in launch costs is closer to $100M, not $20M. That should obviate the other minor differences.
by valuearb 6y ago
SpaceX now offers vertical integration.
And the difference in launch costs is closer to $100M, not $20M. That should obviate the other minor differences.
- Rebelgecko 6y agoWould you mind sharing concrete numbers? I can't imagine that Vulcan is going to cost that much more than an Atlas V. Even if SpaceX reduces their prices by 80% compared to what they charged during EELV, a $100 million difference seems unlikely to me.
- valuearb 6y agoThere is little evidence the Vulkan will cost less than the Atlas V, since it’s a higher capacity launch system with a highly capable but expensive second stage. It’s going to be about the same as an Atlas V & Falcon Heavy, but much cheaper than a Delta IV Heavy. It’s payload to LEO are about 20% higher than a Falcon 9 and about half that of a Falcon Heavy, but it’s payload to GTO/GEO are close to the Falcon Heavy. A commercial contract Atlas V is roughly $50M more than a Falcon 9, but government contracts have a lot of more expensive handling/launch requirements that can easily double the cost. It’s likely the difference is not $100M more, but it’s still going to be easy more than $20M.