Less than a month after the second of two planned certification launches, United Launch Alliance is getting a Vulcan rocket ready for its first national security mission: United States Space Force 106 (USSF-106).
On Monday, ULA shared photos of the 109.2-foot-long (33.3 m) booster being hoisted into the Vertical Integration Facility to begin the stacking process. In the days and possibly weeks to come, the 38.5-foot-long (11.7 m) Centaur 5 upper stage will be added along with four solid rocket boosters and the payload fairings.
The beginning of the rocket’s integration comes as the U.S. Space Force continues to review data from the Cert-2 mission, which launched on Oct. 4 from Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station…