Future Lots See Increasing Cost Savings Against 1st-Generation Orion Equipment

NASA has contracted for 3 Orion spacecraft for the Artemis VI-VIII missions, continuing its buildup to eventually carry astronauts into deep space and onto the moon itself. 

Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor for the Orion program and has completed a pair of vehicles, EFT-1 and Artemis I. EFT-1 flew in 2014, with Artemis only weeks away from its launch to the Moon. The order marks the second 3 missions under NASA's agreement for up to 12 vehicles under its Orion Production and Operations Contract (OPOC), an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract. Costs are reportedly reduced by 50% per vehicle on Artemis III through V, compared to those initial vehicles produced during the design and development phase. The vehicles built for Artemis VI through VIII will see an even greater cost reduction at 30%. 

"Lockheed Martin is honored to partner with NASA to deliver Orion spacecraft for NASA's Artemis missions. This order includes spacecraft, mission planning and support, and takes us into the 2030s," said Lisa Callahan, vice president and general manager for Commercial Civil Space, Lockheed Martin. "We're on the eve of a historic launch kicking off the Artemis era and this contract shows NASA is making long-term plans toward living and working on the Moon, while also having a forward focus on getting humans to Mars."

"We're achieving substantial cost savings from Artemis III through Artemis VIII by extensive structure and system reuse and incorporating advanced digital design and manufacturing processes," said Tonya Ladwig, Orion vice president and program manager at Lockheed Martin Space. "The Artemis II vehicle will reuse select avionics from the Artemis I crew module, and that reuse will continue to dramatically increase to where the Artemis III pressure vessel capsule will be entirely refurbished for the Artemis VI mission."

FMI: www.lockheedmartin.com/orion