NASA PLAN CALLED PREMATURE AUDITORS SAY IT'S TOO EARLY TO COMMIT TO A SPACECRAFT CONTRACTOR.

Byline: JIM SKEEN Staff Writer

PALMDALE -- Plans to award a contract for the development of the nation's next manned spacecraft are drawing criticism from congressional auditors who say NASA will be committing billions of dollars prematurely.

In a report to Congress, the General Accountability Office said the scheduled September date for picking a builder for the Crew Exploration Vehicle will occur well before the agency has a preliminary design and firmer cost estimates.

The GAO report said NASA should hold off on making a long-term commitment to a contractor until after the preliminary design review, scheduled for 2008.

``NASA's current acquisition strategy for the CEV places the project at risk of significant cost overruns, schedule delays and performance shortfalls because it commits the government to a long-term product development effort before establishing a sound business case,'' the report said.

Given the estimate of spending more than $230 billion over the next 20 years, the GAO said it was important for NASA to have success with its new Vision for Space Exploration program, of which the CEV is a part. The Vision effort is aimed at returning astronauts to the moon and moving toward flights to Mars.

The report noted that previous space ventures by the agency, including the canceled X-33 space plane and Space Launch Initiative programs, have cost the nation more than $4.8 billion since the 1980s.

NASA officials disagreed with the report, saying there is no benefit in retaining both the Lockheed Martin and Northrop/Boeing teams that are working on the project through the preliminary design review. It would cost the agency $1 billion for each team to do so, according to a letter to the GAO by NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale.

``NASA has the appropriate level of knowledge to proceed with its knowledge- and performance-based acquisition plan to down-select to a single Crew Exploration Vehicle prime contractor in September '06,'' Dale wrote. ``The agency's acquisition strategy and plans capitalize on the benefits of competition, focus on performance, and address the inherent risks of complex development projects.''

NASA plans to structure the contract award in stages. The first phase will involve the development, production and flight testing of two CEV vehicles, one to transport astronauts and another for cargo. The second phase, which will not be awarded until 2009, involves the production of at least two more CEV vehicles.

A third phase will cover the ongoing operations of the CEV vehicles, potentially through 2019.

The second and third portion of the contract would not be awarded until the contractor teams meet certain milestones.

The CEV will transport up to six crew members to and from the International Space Station. Agency officials said they want the spacecraft to begin conducting missions no later than 2014 -- and the closer the better to the planned 2010 retirement of the space shuttle fleet.

The new moon mission plan has been referred by NASA officials as ``Apollo on steroids.'' The plan calls for placing four astronauts on the moon's surface, instead of the two in Apollo days.

Astronauts will be able to stay on the moon's surface for four days to a week, while Apollo 17's mission lasted three days.

Moon missions are slated to begin in 2018.

NASA has tabbed its Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base to manage the program's abort-flight test integration and operations.

Antelope Valley officials are hopeful that the winning contractor team will conduct portions of their work on the program in Palmdale.

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com

[phone]