ULA

United Launch Alliance is a joint venture formed in December 2006 by Lockheed Martin Space and Boeing Defense, Space & Security to consolidate their rocket launch operations. The company designs, assembles, and launches rockets from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, with manufacturing centered in Decatur, Alabama. Its primary customers are the Department of Defense and NASA, though it also serves commercial clients. ULA inherited the Atlas V from Lockheed Martin and the Delta rocket family from Boeing at its founding; the Delta family has since been retired. The Vulcan Centaur, developed starting in 2014 as the replacement for both legacy vehicles, completed its maiden flight in January 2024 and has been carrying payloads for Amazon's Project Kuiper constellation. ULA's upper stage also delivered the Orion capsule and crew to lunar orbit on NASA's Artemis II mission in 2026.