Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] and the U.S. Air Force (USAF) have begun renovations at Space Launch Complex 3E (SLC-3E) at Vandenberg Air Force Base to prepare the launch site for Atlas V West Coast missions. The first Atlas V launch from SLC-3E is scheduled for the fall of 2005 and will carry a U.S. government payload.

The Atlas V 400 and 500 series of launch vehicles will provide over two times the lift capability of the Atlas IIAS launch vehicle, which completed its final mission from SLC- 3E in December, Lockheed Martin said.