Sierra Nevada Corporation went to court on Wednesday to block Boeing and SpaceX from starting the space taxi project.
The space taxi contract amounts to $6.8 billion as part of NASA's plan to cut its dependence from Russia by 2017. Boeing was awarded $4.2 billion to build its CST-100 while SpaceX received $2.6 billion for its Dragon V2 capsule. Both spaceships have capsules with parachute assisted landings. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser, on the other hand, is a mini-shuttle that needs a runway for landing.
Sierra Nevada started its protest in September, arguing that their bid will allow the space agency to save $900 million.
"With the current awards, the U.S. government would spend up to $900 million more at the publicly announced contracted level for a space program equivalent to the program that SNC proposed," Sierra Nevada said, Reuters reports.
William Gerstenmaier, head of NASA's manned programs, explained that despite the savings offered by the losing bidder, they find that the vehicle design is too technical, and that it might involve critical design decisions which might delay the project launch.
Still, the Southern California-based company decided to step up the legal battle and brought its protest to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in Washington. A spokesperson for Sierra Nevada confirmed the filing, according to the Wall Street Journal.
While the protest hopes to prevent Boeing and SpaceX from starting the development of the space taxis, Boeing said that the protest did not bother them at all. A spokesperson for SpaceX was not available for comment, and NASA declined to comment on pending litigation.
The contract irregularities are currently being reviewed by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) which will release their injunction by early January.
While Sierra Nevada lost the space taxi project, the U.S. Department of Defense chose it for the Space Test Program. The contract is for the development and construction of a next-generation science and technology demonstration satellite, also known as the STPSat-5, which will be launched in 2016.
