ULA executive admits company cannot compete with SpaceX on launch costs

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket launches NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft in March, 2015, from Florida. (credit: NASA)

The most reliable US rocket company, United Launch Alliance, could not compete with upstart provider SpaceX during a competition in late 2015 for an Air Force payload, a senior engineer with the company said Wednesday. SpaceX was able to offer launch capabilities for as little as one-third the price of what United Launch Alliance could, said Brett Tobey, vice president of engineering for the Colorado-based rocket company.

It does not appear Tobey knew his remarks at a University of Colorado-Boulder seminar were being recorded. But Space News obtained a copy of the audio and posted the revealing, nearly hour-long recording on its website. By Wednesday night Reuters reported that Tobey had resigned from his position at United Launch Alliance, effective immediately.

"The views, positions, and inaccurate statements Mr. Tobey presented at his recent speaking engagement were not aligned with the direction of the company, my views, nor the views I expect from ULA leaders," the company's chief executive, Tory Bruno, said in a statement. Tobey's comments are likely to undermine the efforts of Bruno, who has received kudos within the US spaceflight community for trying to make ULA more competitive and innovative.

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