Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s CEO seems be revolutionizing almost every business he is getting into. His electric vehicle maker Tesla has emerged as a promising green car maker. His ambitious Supercharger Network is nothing less than marvelous. And Musk’s latest announcement of the $5 billion gigafactory will produce batteries on a scale never before seen on the earth. Now he has decided to challenge Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) and The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA).
SpaceX bidding against the big boys
SpaceX, a privately-owned firm by Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk, will be completing with The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) and Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) for U.S. Air Force contracts. According to AviationWeek, SpaceX is seeking approval for its Falcon 9 v1.1 medium-class launcher. It will directly compete with United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas 5 and Delta 4. The ULA is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Boeing, and its rockets are used in launching sensitive national security payloads.
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell expects Falcon 9 to secure clearance in time to compete for the first round of USAF contracts that are likely to be awarded later this year. The Air Force is awarding this contract under its Evolved, Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. The Air Force would require three successful Falcon 9 v1.1 launches. Optimistic Gwynne Shotwell said that the company has set much stricter requirements for Falcon than what the USAF imposed on The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) and Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) when testing their Delta and Atlas launch vehicles.
Will Tesla CEO’s dream come true?
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) boss Elon Musk has already stated that SpaceX won’t go for an IPO until its Mars colonial transporter starts flying regularly. SpaceX’s reusable rocket Grasshopper is under development, and Musk is planning to cut costs to make the Mars trip affordable.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares ticked up 0.61% to $254.19 at 12:24 PM EST. The stock has gained about 573% over the past 12 months.
