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SpaceX Inks $102 Million Deal to Demonstrate Tech to the U.S. Air Force

Elon Musk just wouldn't be enough of a Bond-adjacent trillionaire tortured genius without the U.S. Military snooping around in all projects. Whether it's rumors of him pitching his Tesla Cyber Truck to the Army or confirmed reports of a working relationship with the Air Force, America's armed forces seem very high on the Tesla and SpaceX frontman.
Elon Musk Space X 6 photos
Photo: United States Air Force (Outer Image) (SpaceX: Inner Immage)
First firing of a Raptor vacuum engine on the Starship SN20 prototypeFirst firing of a Raptor vacuum engine on the Starship SN20 prototypeFirst firing of a Raptor vacuum engine on the Starship SN20 prototypeFirst firing of a Raptor vacuum engine on the Starship SN20 prototypeFirst firing of a Raptor vacuum engine on the Starship SN20 prototype
With this in mind, the latest news of a formal agreement between the two parties to demonstrate SpaceX technology to the Air Force worth an estimated $102 million should not surprise you in the slightest. According to official sources within SpaceX, the Department of Defense is indeed very interested in Musk's pledge to be able to deliver cargo anywhere in the world with a few hours of notice.

"The DoD is very interested in the ability to deliver the cargo anywhere on Earth to support humanitarian aid and disaster relief," said Program manager Greg Spanjers. Now, when the U.S. Military says it intends to transport "humanitarian and disaster relief," it's important to take this with a grain of salt, if not a whole salt lick.

There's a wide array of payloads and materials, many of which the general public is completely unaware of, which Elon Musk will be more than happy to accommodate, assuming the technology demonstrations prepared will run smoothly.

This contract, finalized on the 14th of January, is the largest single rocket cargo program ever undertaken by the U.S. Armed Forces, beating out a contract awarded to the U.S. Transportation Command in 2020, a program that includes Blue Origin of Jeff Bezos and Amazon fame.

The contract has yet to select specific vehicles for testing as of January 2022, but expect these parameters to come quickly and in rapid order once test dates are set in stone. If all goes well, the man with more assets than a Fort Knox gold vault might be about to get even richer.
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