Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to congratulate United Launch Alliance (ULA) and NASA on their newly-announced Space Act Agreement to help ready the Atlas V for flying humans commercially to space as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The majority of the work under the Space Act Agreement will be completed by the end of 2011, according to ULA.

“I am truly excited about the addition of ULA to NASA’s Commercial Crew Development Program team. Having ULA on board may speed the development of a commercial crew transportation system for the International Space Station, allowing NASA to concentrate its resources on exploring beyond low-Earth orbit,” said NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, in a press release issued by NASA.

John Gedmark, executive director of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, stated, “Atlas V has flown 26 for 26 successful missions, and the Atlas family has had 97 consecutive successes. The Commercial Crew Program is strengthened by today’s announcement.”

“Today’s announcement further highlights how the Commercial Crew Program is enabling NASA to regain American access to space as soon as possible,” added Gedmark.