United Launch Alliance Assumes Marketing and Sales for Atlas V Commercial Launches from Lockheed Martin

United Launch Alliance (ULA) has assumed responsibility for the marketing and sales of Atlas V, the world’s most reliable launch vehicle, from Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services. In addition to performing all of the operational activities related to Atlas V launch services, as ULA has done since its formation in 2006, ULA now has the full authority to market and sell Atlas V launch services to commercial customers.

“ULA has undergone a tremendous transformation over the last two years, and with our innovative techniques, coupled with world-class reliability and schedule certainty, we are well positioned to offer Atlas V launch services to our current and potential commercial customers,” said Tory Bruno, ULA’s president and CEO. “ULA will serve as a business partner committed to building a launch strategy that maximizes the commercial provider’s profits and positions them above their competition.”

ULA leads the industry in mission and schedule reliability, building on a successful heritage of nearly six decades. When it absolutely, positively has to get to space safely and on time, ULA gets the job done. ULA’s Atlas V has flown 75 missions with 100 percent mission success, from numerous GPS satellites flying today to exploring the solar system and beyond, and has the highest reliability with the lowest insurance rates in the industry. ULA offers extensive experience from a long heritage of launching communications and Earth imaging commercial missions for customers around the world.  

“The value of a launch is a lot more than its price tag. ULA Atlas V launch services help customers capture savings and added value by delivering spacecraft to orbit earlier, extending mission life, and providing unsurpassed schedule certainty,” said Bruno. “Lockheed Martin’s Commercial Launch Services organization served its customers well with a flawless record of mission success and strong customer partnerships for more than a decade. We look forward to continuing that legacy of performance, service and precision.”

Tom Tshudy, ULA’s vice president and general counsel, will lead the new global commercial sales organization. Before joining ULA, Tshudy served as senior vice president and general counsel for International Launch Services (ILS) as well as vice president and general counsel at Lockheed Martin while ILS was a subsidiary to sell and market launch services utilizing the Atlas II, III and V launch vehicles.

With more than a century of combined heritage, ULA is the nation’s most experienced and reliable launch service provider. ULA has successfully delivered more than 120 satellites to orbit that aid meteorologists in tracking severe weather, unlock the mysteries of our solar system, provide critical capabilities for troops in the field and enable personal device-based GPS navigation.