Vandy Preps First Atlas V

Feb. 5, 2008

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

Airmen and contractors at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., are preparing for the West Coast Launch Facility’s first launch of an Atlas V evolved expendable launch vehicle. It is scheduled for lift-off on Feb. 26. The Vandenberg space team already has launched an EELV, in fact two of them. The facility launched two Delta IV boosters in 2006 out of Space Launch Complex-6. The Atlas V will use SLC-3, which has undergone a $300 million refurbishment by United Launch Alliance to accommodate the larger booster. (30th Space Wing report by 2nd Lt. Raymond Geoffroy.)

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

Trending Stories

Air Force Orders No-Notice Readiness Inspections to Hold Commanders to Account

After 11-Month Vacancy, Air Force Has a New Vice Chief

Midnight Hammer Lessons: USAF Needs More Tankers, Munitions

Space Force Activates NORTHCOM Component Amid Homeland Defense Shift

Related

Congress Passes $839 Billion Budget for Defense

Feb. 3, 2026
Congress officially passed the fiscal 2026 defense spending bill Feb. 3 after a House of Representatives vote, approving $839 billion in Pentagon funding and sending the package to President Donald Trump for his signature.

NRO Pulls Back the Veil On Cold War-Era Intelligence Satellite Program

Feb. 2, 2026
The Pentagon agency charged with building and operating U.S. spy satellites recently declassified some details about a Cold War-era surveillance program called Jumpseat—a revelation it says sheds light on the importance of satellite imaging technology and how it has advanced in the decades since. 

After 11-Month Vacancy, Air Force Has a New Vice Chief

Feb. 2, 2026
The Senate confirmed Gen. John D. Lamontagne to be Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force by voice vote late Jan. 30, along five other Air Force three-stars and a new commander for U.S. Southern Command.

Midnight Hammer Lessons: USAF Needs More Tankers, Munitions

Feb. 2, 2026
Air Force leaders hail recent strike missions like Midnight Hammer as a shining example of operational readiness, but that success also highlights the challenges ahead should USAF need to mount an extended long-range strike campaign.

Air Force Patent Holiday Offers Businesses Inventions For Free 

Jan. 30, 2026
Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.orgThe Air Force Research Laboratory is offering free licenses for dozens of...

Partial Government Shutdown Hits Pentagon

Jan. 30, 2026
The Pentagon and several other federal agencies suffered a lapse in appropriations Jan. 31, as a full-year fiscal 2026 spending package awaits passage in the House after a last-minute approval in the Senate. The odds are high, however, that the partial government shutdown is quickly resolved.