Public sentiment on SpaceX's defense contracts is mixed, encompassing admiration for technological innovation and significant concerns regarding privacy, ethical implications of privatized military contracts, satellite congestion, and potential corruption. While many praise Musk's contributions to technology, fears about space debris and the monopolization of industry raise alarms among observers.

SpaceX

Pentagon

Elon Musk

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"SpaceX's expanding role" is due almost entirely to its Falcon 9 Block 5 launch vehicle. The F9B5 is the sole reason that SpaceX has been able to deploy more than 7000 Starlink comsats to LEO at extremely low internal launch services cost, probably $15M to $20M to launch ~20t (metric ton) payloads to the Starlink transfer orbit. And it's those Starlink comsats and their military versions that has the military gleefully jumping up and down. 

But the F9B5 and the Merlin 1D engines that power it are not huge advances beyond what existed since early 1960s in the Saturn 1B and the H-1 engine. Those SpaceX products are refinements of that technology to permit fast manufacturing of parts that need fast manufacturing like the F9B5 second stage and the payload fairings, which are not reusable. 

The contractors who built Mercury, Gemini, Apollo/Saturn and the Space Shuttle in the 1960s and 1970s had the design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities to produce something like the Falcon 9 Block 5 and the Dragon spacecraft then.

What they didn't have is a Man with a Plan as SpaceX had in the 2000s. And that's why SpaceX has most of the worldwide commercial launch services business now.

flshr19

Somehow doesn't talk about how the core issue is that SpaceX is simply *better* than everyone else. If the other companies could get even within shouting distance of competing they'd win contracts in a hurry

Bunslow

&gt; European allies suddenly worried about their dependence on SpaceX’s Starlink for critical battlefield communications in Ukraine. This prompted an accelerated push to seek European alternatives

Yes, the development of COMPLETELY NEW CAPABILITIES that didn't exist even a few years ago and that no other entity is REMOTELY capable of providing, does indeed produce "dependency". 

I'm not surprised it "prompted an accelerated push to seek European alternatives". Good luck with that.

Oknight

Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I've seen in this thread:

|Fewer Letters|More Letters|
|-------|---------|---|
|[ESA](/r/SpaceX/comments/1kon2a8/stub/mt6shhj "Last usage")|European Space Agency|
|[LEO](/r/SpaceX/comments/1kon2a8/stub/msugbxf "Last usage")|Low Earth Orbit (180-2000km)|
| |Law Enforcement Officer (most often mentioned during transport operations)|

|Jargon|Definition|
|-------|---------|---|
|[Starlink](/r/SpaceX/comments/1kon2a8/stub/mt6t01o "Last usage")|SpaceX's world-wide satellite broadband constellation|
|[blisk](/r/SpaceX/comments/1kon2a8/stub/msuce2w "Last usage")|Portmanteau: [Bladed disk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blisk)|

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Decronym

Low cost launch and technical excellence will transform commercial, civil and military space and take [SpaceX to the next level](https://chrisprophet.substack.com/p/spacex-transformation-b17). Mars is just home base.

CProphet

Space Force utilized starship and making Halo ODST a reality would sell hard.

kad202

Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds

Colour me surprised.  When DOGE is canceling everybody else's contracts and insisting that departments use SpaceX/Starlink regardless of their suitability or they'll fire everybody until somebody says yes.  

The White House internet system now relies on cables from the WH to a government data center, a few miles away. Where it then goes to Starlink.  Which has to be the worst possible combination.  

Why do FCC sites with land based multi Gigabit internet connections need to use Starlink only?

Then all it needs is Elon on some Ketamine or meth bender to cut the links.  He's definetly on long term Ketamine, which in 100% of cases causes short and long term memory issues and that's just what he's admitted to.  As well as smoking marijuana on a live stream.   So god knows what else he's taking.

MisterrTickle

WTF?  Fuck Elon!  The very Department he is helping destroy is getting the largest piece of the pie of $13.7 Billion.

ALEdding2019

In other unexpected news….

Let’s see if the big defense contractors take this news laying down.

PoliticsIsDepressing

At the rate this is going wouldn't this eventually become a SpaceX monopoly?

BlueHym

wonderland_citizen93

Ok, let’s be very honest here though. SpaceX was already the US military’s top launch provider before the Trump/Musk administration. Falcon 9/Falcon Heavy are just much cheaper than everyone else.

LittleHornetPhil

Better question is why hasn’t anyone else beaten SpaceX at their reusable launch capability yet?

That’s your answer. Unless we’re actually arguing for going with an inferior product on purpose out of what amounts to… spite.

With how much money the government has poured into SpaceX, I **expect** them to use them as a top launch provider.

NicodemusV

Missiles will now have glue 

armored cybertrucks left on the road, not even taliban will pick them for parts

millos15

It's payment to Elon for "services rendered".

No-Profession422

Can we get some doge cutting for that?  Or are we plainly juat ok with this level of corruption now?

Maleficent-Farm9525

I know there’s probably corruption and preferential-ism here, but legitimately SpaceX is the best American launch company right now. They’re far cheaper than any of their competitors and they provide a superior launch experience with reusability.

mq1coperator

Next administration should shut them out and make them liquidate

Dry-Interaction-1246

joesperrazza

This is just the start. They do have unique options for the price. What worries me more is when Trump figures out these are cheap enough that they can put conventional explosives on these things, and he can take out a target any place on earth in minutes.

Luckygecko1

Ah helllll no, I hope to the universe and god above that when/if this administration ends that they just kick anything related to Elon musk to the curb. Hopefully the parasites don’t entrench themselves too far in and lay eggs before what’s left of the government gets them out

WasForcedToUseTheApp

Gonna be a very expensive field loss when his shit goes boom for a unexpected learning experience

zangief137

mickeyflinn

I have to imagine nationalizing Space-X's IP is the conversation the next administration will have to have. Eliminating Mr. Musk's risk to our society is simply the highest priority short term we have.

markth_wi

While everyone screaming about conflict of interest (it is), I'll ask. Is there a better option out there?

Firecracker048

SpaceX has no competition, they're the obvious winner. They're cheaper and more reliable than any other launch provider.

Raddz5000

The defense prediction act doesn't allow for taking the industry. It would just allow Trump to force SpaceX to produce and sell wartime supplies.

Additional-Sky-7436

Works for me. I would love to see how conservatives justify Trump reenacting a plot point from Atlas Shrugged.

LocalInactivist

Serpentongue

No he won't. They'll kiss and make up by next week. They need him in charge of twitter.

SexyWampa

Trump's minions couldn't run a Dairy Queen though, so won't work.

SpiritualAd8998

They did something similar to the movie studios in trhe 1940s

Difficult_Ad2864

With the billions the tax payer has already pumped into SpaceX the government basically owns most of it anyway

justthegrimm

rockeye13

Bold of you to predict something Alex jones was saying a day before.

ReturnOfSeq

Correction, this should read more like, Space X awarded social security funds to help offset telsa stock losses.

DonPitotes

Surprise surprise. Elmo's payoff for taking the heat for DOGE.

magisterdoc

The most obvious conflict of interest ever.

JasonAnarchy

and there it is.   is it ok to point out the 70 metre high conflict of interest yet? or too soon

HansBooby

Well there’s 13.7 billion that could be put towards paying off the debt.   I mean if you actually were trying to pay off the debt.

montigoo

There’s where the salaries of fired federal employees is going.

Blankboo97

MoonOut_StarsInvite

fourbutthick

Mel Brooks wouldn’t have gone here. A quad-amputee still-fighting knight is downright serious in comparison.

Soulpatch7

A South African immigrant with 4 baby mammas and 15 children collecting money from the US government while undermining the foundations of our democratic republic and acting like a character played by Mike Meyers on a comedy show.

BookwoodFarm

kelpkelso

slikk50

Impossible_IT

Mr. Conflict of Interests gets another payout. Sad.

StuntmanReese

There goes all the recouped DOGE money 🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡

Butters5768

Talk about a conflict of interest, the collusion here is getting out of hand

justadudeandadog3

Pretend-Disaster2593

Did you people even read the article?  Three companies got contracts. And SpaceX is by far the best for the per flight price.  

“SpaceX secured the largest share of the contracts, landing $5.9 billion for 28 launches. Meanwhile, ULA snatched $5.4 billion for 19 missions, and Blue Origin received $2.4 billion for seven.”

[deleted]

And now tell me there’s no conflict of interest

InternationalBand494

What’s the number for DOGE? I have some government fraud and waste I wanna report

Cinderjacket

Do the national security missions include teaching the morons how to use encrypted messaging. We gonna spend 80 bazillion doing national security in space while basic principles of security are being ignored on the ground.

PaleontologistShot25

😬 that’ll be a weird situation eventually….

Jomak13

No conflict of interest in this crooked mob administration

farnswoth-fury69

But if your hungry, homeless, just poor; there is absolutely no money 😳🤦‍♂️🤷‍♂️

Cha0s4201

I’m guess you must be the world’s top expert then.

Fickle-Rooster420

who needs healthcare when you can burn trillions in space?

g0odwill_hunting

matthewkulp

I’m astonished that this guy or his company can get a security clearance. Likely the stuff SpaceX is dealing  with is so classified that it’s “…hey, just send it into this orbit and we’ll take it from here… (dipsh#t).

Prize_Marionberry232


I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if 275,245 voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly fired. I fear something terrible has happened.

Bitchinfussincussin

Bullshit! This is oligarchy and corruption.

So if you’d given the baby Jesus $200000 a day, every day,  since the day he was was born he still wouldn’t be close to being as rich as Muck, yet here he is still grifting to get his vanity projects paid for by someone else

mickjulier

OddRecognition3483

Accurate-Issue-6334

well.  well.  well. so this is the reason he keeps absent from the scene

Downtown_Umpire2242

GoddamnCheetah

JFC. Is it not possible to give ANYONE ELSE a goddamn contract. I am so fucking sick of the paypal mafia MONOPOLIZING all the contracts

SiWeyNoWay

The grift continues after he lost so much in the market.

BoosterRead78

I knew the government has been corrupted by money for a loooooong time. This shit is just blatant though. 

When are these people going to jail!?

whitemamba24xx

What a surprise. The grifters are grifting.

bladerunner2442

This level of corruption is criminal and should be prosecuted

Warjilis

BeardedAndTatted

Lot of trolls here anymore. SpaceX had the best bid and they still awarded contracts to other companies.

dirty_old_priest_4

GROSS! “National security missions”, sure Jan.

Cool-Association3420

Certainly involving a businessman who has used his product to coerce and manipulate its customers should be deeply involved in national security.

Especially when the US is talking about putting kill switches in its airplanes, for example…

There’s no way this gun in drawer introduced in the first act shows up later… just flavor and world building.

TheOtherBookstoreCat

Nothing to see here.  This is not the fraud you’re looking for…

UncannyIntuition

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ColossusofNero

Zoey_0110

SpaceX secured the largest share of the contracts, landing $5.9 billion for 28 launches. Meanwhile, ULA snatched $5.4 billion for 19 missions, and Blue Origin received $2.4 billion for seven.

The_Starving_Autist

Omfggtfohwts

“national security missions”

Does this boil down to just espionage on people?

BigE1263

Material-Scheme-8971

Something, something corporate welfare, more stock manipulation and grifting.

dennismfrancisart

DimensionThin147

chumlySparkFire

Haven’t they had a bunch of failed rocket launches lately? Or is that the point….

boyunderthebelljar

 Ad move to SpaceX. They watch their rockets explode

njman100

As if it wasn’t obvious already they’re just embezzling government money

WeOutHereInSmallbany

Last two launches sploded, right? Vote of no confidence and open corruption.… unless we the people own spaceX, we have basically funded it’s creation… look into it.

Antique_Maybe_8324

Tasty-Performer6669

Writing up a government contract to pay back the shortfalls of his own company, due to the self-inflicted damage upon his own personal image.

Yveliad

Given to a company that hasn’t yet even leaved the earth atmosphere yet this is a fucking joke

Intelligent-Sir1375

SpaceX has secured important contracts from the U.S. Pentagon, totaling $714 million for military launches, emphasizing the intersection of private industry and national security.

SpaceX Defense Contracts

Why This Matters

Public Sentiment Summary

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What the people want