Agree/Re:"..stock has and will move on the fortunes of the commercial
division...."
But following excerpt from the Orange County Register is interesting:
[SEA LAUNCH TRIAL SET FOR SATURDAY: Saturday, if all goes well, an international consortium called Sea Launch will use a converted oil rig floating near the equator to blast a Russian-built rocket into Earth orbit.... Sea Launch Co., which is managed and partially owned by Boeing, hopes to capture a significant share of the $20 billion world market for commercial satellite launches expected during the next 10 years.
The venture marries a former Russian ICBM builder, a Norwegian shipbuilder and the world's largest aerospace company. It has not been without problems. The satellite industry is so worried about the safety of the Ukrainian-built main stages that no telecommunications company would agree to fly on the inaugural launch. Saturday's flight will use a demonstration payload. Boeing owns just 40 percent of Sea Launch, so the profits that can be generated for its bottom line are relatively small -- perhaps $100 million per year. But Boeing's current Delta II and new Delta III rockets can lift only 3-and 4-ton payloads, respectively -- small by current standards. A bigger Delta IV is planned, but it's several years away. Sea Launch can lift five tons, and it was assembled in less than five years. Launching from the equator, Sea Launch's Zenit rocket can carry 12 percent more weight than if it fired from Vandenberg or Cape Canaveral; 30 percent more than using Russia's Northern-hemisphere launch sites. Only Europe's Arianespace has an equatorial launch site today, in French Guiana.
"Clearly if it gets up and running, it could become a major competitor to Proton, Atlas, and Lockheed's international launch services," said Peter Aseritis, who tracks Boeing for Credit Suisse First Boston. "If it works, then Boeing is on its way to being a player in the heavier launch market." ]
|
