---
title: "SpaceX Is Now Suing the United States Government"
description: "## On the DL"
date: "2019-05-20"
modified: "2019-05-20"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/spacex-lawsuit-united-states"
categories:
  - "Space"
  - "SpaceX"
tags:
  - "elon musk"
  - "SpaceX"
  - "the digest"
  - "united state"
---

# SpaceX Is Now Suing the United States Government

![The details of a newly filed SpaceX lawsuit against the U.S. are currently under wraps, but it may have something to do with an upcoming Air Force contract.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/spacex-lawsuit-united-states.png>)
*\<em\>Image: SpaceX via Flickr/Jacqui via Pixabay/Tag Hartman-Simkins\</em\>*

## On the DL

SpaceX is suing the U.S. government — and it doesn't want anyone to know why.

In addition to filing a lawsuit with the Court of Federal Claims on Friday, SpaceX also filed a [motion](<https://cdn.geekwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/spacex-documents.pdf>) requesting that the details of the suit be kept private. According [to *GeekWire*](<https://www.geekwire.com/2019/spacex-files-lawsuit-federal-government-asks-keep-details-wraps/>), SpaceX made the request to protect "confidential and proprietary information and source selection information not appropriate for release to the public" — a vague yet intriguing sign of friction between Elon Musk's spacetech venture and one of its biggest clients.

## Project Unknown

The motion refers to the SpaceX lawsuit as a "Bid Protest Complaint," so it's almost certainly related to a [SpaceX](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-spacex-test-shuttle-crash-landed>) bid for a government contract.

Another clue: *The Washington Post* [has pointed out](<https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/05/18/spacex-is-suing-government-once-again-reason-is-secret/?utm_term=.9fff3b405d40>) that the Air Force is on the cusp of awarding a pair of companies each launch contracts that could worth billions of dollars.

## Back in Court

This isn't the first time SpaceX has sued the U.S. government over its bidding process.

In 2014, the company [filed](<https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/elon-musks-spacex-sues-government-protest-military-launch-monopoly-n89926>) a suit after the Air Force purchased 36 rocket cores from SpaceX competitor United Launch Alliance. It filed [another suit](<https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/02/15/spacex-files-protest-of-nasas-lucy-launch-contract-awarded-to-ula/>) in February 2019 after NASA awarded United Launch Alliance the contract for a 2021 asteroid mission launch.

SpaceX ended up [dropping](<https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/spacex-air-force-settle-dispute-over-military-launches-n292571>) both [complaints](<https://spacenews.com/spacex-drops-protest-of-nasa-launch-contract/>), so it's hard to predict whether this case will actually make it through the court process or get pulled like its predecessors.

**READ MORE:** [SpaceX files lawsuit against the federal government — but asks to keep the details under wraps](<https://www.geekwire.com/2019/spacex-files-lawsuit-federal-government-asks-keep-details-wraps/>) \[*GeekWire*\]

**More on SpaceX:** *[NASA Admits SpaceX Ship Crashed During Failed Test Last Month](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-spacex-test-shuttle-crash-landed>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)