National Reconnaissance Office Release #10-22

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Sept. 24, 2022

Office of Public Affairs

703-808-1198, media@nro.mil

Vandenberg’s final Delta IV Heavy launch with NROL-91 mission

CHANTILLY, Va. – The National Reconnaissance Office—in partnership with the United 

Launch Alliance and the U.S. Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 30 and Space Systems 

Command—marked the end of an era with the NROL-91 mission today at 3:25 p.m. Pacific 

Time / 6:25 p.m. Eastern Time. This was the fifth and final United Launch Alliance Delta IV 

Heavy rocket to launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base since 2011.

The NROL-91 mission is the latest national security payload to deliver critical intelligence 

information from space for our nation’s warfighters and decision makers. NRO capabilities 

provide the foundation for America’s advantage and strength in space.

“The Delta IV Heavy has proven to be an integral part of the NRO’s history, helping us build the 

architecture for the world’s best space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance,” said 

NRO Director Dr. Chris Scolese. “As our agency and the aerospace industry continue to innovate 

and evolve, we will explore new vehicles for launching payloads even more efficiently and 

effectively, with even greater capacity, agility, speed, and resilience. We are excited about the 

new technologies and partnerships that will define our next chapter.”

NRO has launched a total of 15 Delta IVs, comprised of medium and heavy variants, beginning 

with NROL-22 in 2006. NRO’s final Delta IV Medium launch from Vandenberg Space Force 

Base was NROL-47 in 2018. NRO has two remaining Delta IV Heavy launches procured under 

the Launch Vehicle Production Services contract that are projected to launch from Cape 

Canaveral Space Force Station in 2023 and 2024. The contract is managed by the U.S. Space 

Force Space Systems Command Assured Access to Space. 

“The NRO has a long history of success with these rockets, and we appreciate the work the team 

at Vandenberg Space Force Base has done to get our payloads into orbit,” said Col. Chad Davis, 

NRO’s director of the Office of Space Launch. “We are also grateful for our enduring 

partnership with Space Launch Delta 30 and the Space Systems Command—their expertise and 

commitment to our mission help ensure we have the capability necessary to collect and deliver 

critical data to our customers.”

Since 1961, NRO has pushed the envelope of U.S. space-based intelligence collection with 

boldness and ingenuity. Today, NRO’s innovative legacy continues to thrive as it develops, 

acquires, launches, and operates the world’s most capable intelligence, reconnaissance, and 

surveillance satellites. NROL-91 will strengthen NRO’s ability to provide a wide-range of timely 

intelligence information to national decision makers, warfighters, and intelligence analysts to 

protect the nation’s vital interests and support humanitarian efforts worldwide. 
2

###

The NRO is the leader in developing, acquiring, launching, and operating the nation’s 

intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance satellites to secure and expand America’s 

advantage in space. We are building a diversified and resilient architecture of spacecraft and 

ground systems designed to meet the challenges of a changing space environment by 

accelerating innovation and leveraging strategic partnerships, backed by a diverse and highly 

skilled workforce. At NRO, we See It, Hear It, Sense It so our nation’s warfighters and 

policymakers have decision advantage amid increasing global competition.

Learn more at NRO.gov.