AMELIA, La. — Officials with United Launch Alliance joined with representatives from Bollinger Shipyards on Thursday to mark a step forward in the build-out of a vessel that will play an important role in the transportation of rockets built in the Tennessee Valley.
A ceremony took place in Louisiana at the laying of the keel of the future R/S SpaceShip, which will be used to move Vulcan rockets from a factory in Decatur to launch sites in Florida and California.
The 356-foot-long vessel will be the second transport ship in ULA's upstart fleet, which already includes the R/S RocketShip.
“SpaceShip’s future voyages will transit rivers and seas, delivering powerful rockets to our launch pads and beyond, with that journey continuing literally into space,” said ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno. “As all rockets are not created equal, the same is true for ships. Bollinger’s legacy of more than 75 years of excellence in shipbuilding is impressive and we are proud to partner with this very capable team.”
The contract for the project was awarded in December 2023 and deliver of the ship is expected in early 2026.
Vulcan is ULA’s next generation rocket. Its inaugural launch took place in January.
This week, stacking of a Vulcan rocket took place at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in preparation for its first national security mission: United States Space Force 106 (USSF-106).
ULA is expanding launch capacity in support of its customer Amazon’s Project Kuiper. The Vulcan rocket is contracted for 38 launches to support the deployment for the Project Kuiper constellation, which aims to provide fast, affordable broadband service to unserved and underserved communities around the world.