{"id":17908,"date":"2020-07-14T19:04:05","date_gmt":"2020-07-14T19:04:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/uncategorized\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:08:52","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:08:52","slug":"funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","title":{"rendered":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2014 The U.S. Air Force\u2019s top acquisition official hopes money will materialize for small launch providers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/battlefield-tech\/space\/2020\/07\/02\/space-force-walks-back-stimulus-contracts-for-small-launch-providers\/\" target=_blank>whose Defense Production Act contracts were withdrawn<\/a> earlier this month due to a lack of funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In mid-June, the Space and Missile Systems Center announced that it would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/battlefield-tech\/space\/2020\/06\/19\/space-force-invokes-defense-production-act-to-prop-up-small-launch-market\/\" target=_blank>award ride-share contracts<\/a> to six firms by using funding meant to bolster companies made financially vulnerable by the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the government in early July reversed course, recalling the $116 million designated for small launch providers because of \u201cadditional small business needs that were generated,\u201d such as other government loan programs, said Will Roper, the Air Force\u2019s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/04\/30\/will-the-small-launch-market-survive-covid-19-dod-has-concerns\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Electron-at-Launch-Complex-2.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Will the small launch market survive COVID-19? The Pentagon has concerns<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Space Force Acquisition Council is sending out a survey to industry to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the market and what the Department of Defense can do to support vulnerable sectors.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMy hope is that whenever there\u2019s new [Defense Production Act] Title 3 funding or when resource frees up due to other efforts not executing as planned, that those [contracts] are the first to go back into the hopper,\u201d Roper told reporters Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf I were asked today to put in one new Title 3 initiative, it\u2019s small launch because I think it\u2019s going to be an amazing industry base for this country, and if properly influenced, my military mission can be highly disruptive in future war fighting, especially if satellites can be put up in a very responsive way that changes the calculus for holding space assets at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the June announcement, SMC stated that Aevum, Astra, X-BOW, Rocket Lab USA, Space Vector and VOX Space would each receive sole-source contracts for two ride-share missions to be conducted over the next 24 months. But it may no longer be possible for the companies to get all $116 million originally set aside for those contracts, Roper acknowledged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t know if that much will free up,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have had quite a few come in lower than initially estimated. So it\u2019s possible that a resource will be freed, and whatever it is, we can scale some effort in small launch.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With venture capital drying up due to worldwide economic instability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Pentagon leaders have been vocal about the impact on the emerging small launch industry, which they see as a critical capability that could allow the Space Force to launch small satellites more cheaply and rapidly.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In April, Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen Lord labeled it \u2014 along with shipbuilding and aviation \u2014 as one of the three sectors the Defense Department was most concerned could be permanently impacted.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMuch of the industry have limited flight capability or are in the critical transition from development to flight, and this funding restriction may prevent or delay these systems,\u201d Col. Rob Bongiovi, director of SMC Launch Enterprise Systems Directorate, told C4ISRNET in April. \u201cThe Space and Missile Systems Center is evaluating the impacts to the small launch industrial base to consider actions to enable a robust U.S. launch industrial base.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><i>Nathan Strout in Washington contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Air Force&#8217;s top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":47672,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":37,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"10":{"categories":["space","military-space-report","newsletters","daily-news-roundup","industry","pentagon"],"primary_category":"space"}}},"categories":[7,106,29,32,37,81,26],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3188],"class_list":["post-17908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-battlefield-tech","category-daily-brief","category-home","category-newsletters","category-space","category-space-missile-defense","category-special-reports"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"XEBYILCYDNA43AFLUCPKPGEDB4","arc_canonical_url":"\/battlefield-tech\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts - C4ISRNet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Air Force&#039;s top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Air Force&#039;s top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"C4ISRNet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Valerie Insinna\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Valerie Insinna\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 500,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Battlefield Tech\",\n\t                \"Daily Brief\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Space\",\n\t                \"Space and Missile Defense\",\n\t                \"Special Reports\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts - C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"The Air Force's top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/2020\\\/07\\\/14\\\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Space\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/space\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"c4-space\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Media for the Intelligence-Age Military | C4ISRNET\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"C4ISRNet\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts - C4ISRNet","description":"The Air Force's top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts","og_description":"The Air Force's top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","og_site_name":"C4ISRNet","article_published_time":"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00","author":"Valerie Insinna","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Valerie Insinna","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts","datePublished":"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/"},"wordCount":500,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Battlefield Tech","Daily Brief","Home","Newsletters","Space","Space and Missile Defense","Special Reports"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/","name":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts - C4ISRNet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2020-07-14T19:04:05+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T18:08:52+00:00","description":"The Air Force's top acquisition official explained why contract awards for six small launch companies were recalled earlier this month.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2020\/07\/14\/funding-for-small-launch-providers-still-in-question-after-withdrawal-of-116m-in-contracts\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Space","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/","ad_zone":"c4-space"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Funding for small launch providers still in question after withdrawal of $116M in contracts"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","name":"C4ISRNet","description":"Media for the Intelligence-Age Military | C4ISRNET","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization","name":"C4ISRNet","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png","caption":"C4ISRNet"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F12-Electron-Vertical.jpg.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"C4ISRNet","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17908"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17908\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17914,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17908\/revisions\/17914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17908"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=17908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}