spacetoday.net: NASA halts work on HLS contract amid protests

Posted: Sat, May 8, 2021, 11:02 AM ET (1502 GMT)
Starship lunar lander (SpaceX)

NASA has halted work on the Human Landing System (HLS) contract awarded to SpaceX amid protests by Blue Origin and SpaceX. NASA said April 30 it instructed SpaceX to suspend work on the HLS award as the GAO reviews protests filed last week by the two losing bidders. The stop-work order was expected given the protests. Dynetics argued in its protest that NASA should have revised the HLS procurement once it was clear it would not have sufficient funding to make two awards, as originally anticipated. One alternative approach the company suggested was to exercise options in the proposals to perform another round of studies for future landers needed for the "sustainable" phase of lunar exploration. The company also took issue with NASA's technical evaluation of its proposal.