United Launch Alliance To Be Given The Go Order

US military officials and antitrust regulators are dotting the i's and crossing the t's on an agreement that would allow two financially-strapped aerospace powerhouses to merge operations for government rocket contracts. If the agreement goes forward, Boeing and Lockheed Martin would be allowed to join forces in an operation called United Launch Alliance, to carry out missions for the defense department and other government agencies.

The Wall Street Journal reports the US Federal Trade Commission and the companies expect to sign a consent decree in the next few weeks, that would bring to an end over a year of legal wrangling over the specifics of the planned merger.

Those battles focused specifically on the question of whether such an agreement would create an aerospace monopoly, forcing other contractors such as Northrop Grumman, as well as smaller companies, out of the running for lucrative government work.

As Aero-News reported earlier this year, the Pentagon signed off on the proposal in January -- and recommended that other entities involved follow suit.

The merger between the two companies is meant to save at least $150 million per year, by eliminating duplicate efforts and combining management of government weather, communications and surveillance.

FMI: www.boeing.com, www.lockheed-martin.com