Posted: Thu, Sep 22, 2005, 6:47 AM ET (1047 GMT)
Boeing and Lockheed Martin withdrew paperwork with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Wednesday that sought permission to merge their EELV operations, but the companies said they plan to resubmit the filings within days. In a statement, the companies said that they would resubmit a filing later this week with the FTC seeking approval for the form the United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture that would merge operations of Boeing's Delta 4 and Lockheed Martin's Atlas 5 launch vehicles. The resubmission would restart a 30-day period for the FTC to evaluate the proposal. Recent media reports had suggested that regulators had raised questions about the ULA, slowing the required government approvals. The two companies announced the ULA in early May, saying that by combining the management and manufacturing of the two EELV programs, it would offer significant savings to the government.

Related Links:

•  Space News article (subscription required)
•  Wall Street Journal article (subscription required)
•  AP article
•  Boeing press release