Analysis and discussion of issues that impact business

In a tussle over which is more important - national security or free-market competiveness - it looks like security issues win out.

The Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday it has approved the joint venture between defense contractors Lockheed Martin Corp. and the Boeing Co. to launch government satellites, lifting a final barrier to the long-delayed proposal.

There are some ruffled feathers, but how long can you wait on national defense issues?

There are legitimate concerns.

While the commission concluded that the $1.06 billion partnership between the nation’s two biggest defense firms could unfairly muscle out competitors, it said that concern was outweighed by the national security demands for a reliable and cheaper way to send military and other satellites into space.

But after 18 months of haggling, the time for talking had ended.

The so-called United Launch Alliance, or ULA, was proposed in May 2005 to resolve a longstanding dispute between Lockheed and Boeing, then the two major suppliers of rockets for government launches.

Government contracts make for strange bedfellows.

It also came after Boeing was stripped of $1 billion in launch contracts and suspended for 20 months from launches by the Air Force after accusations that it used thousands of sensitive documents stolen from Lockheed to gain an edge in the bitter rivalry. Boeing later agreed to pay $615 million to end a Justice Department probe of the case.

 For half a billion dollars, I suppose I could get along with anyone too.

The government already had few contractors to choose from. Maryland-based Lockheed and Chicago-based Boeing are the only domestic suppliers of medium to heavy rockets. California-based Northrop Grumman is the only other major competitor in the domestic space launch vehicle business, according to the FTC.

The lack of competition is a concern, but that just means more diligence is necessary to keep this from turning into another government spending fiasco.

We'll see if Congress and the taxpayers are up to the task.