NASA Scrapped a Half-Built $1.4B Moon Launcher — After Paying $300M Past Its Own Red Flags

Executive Briefing

• Cancels Mobile Space Launcher 2 after spending $1.4 billion, issuing a stop work order to contractor Bechtel National in March 2026.
• Reveals original 2023 completion deadline and $383 million budget ballooned to a projected $2 billion and a 2028 delivery date.
• Warns NASA's inspector general flagged the project as untenable in August 2024, yet officials approved another $300 million in payments.
• Salvages usable hardware as spare parts for Mobile Launcher 1, which supported the recent Artemis II lunar flyby mission.
• Owes Bechtel an additional $100 million not yet disbursed, per federal spending records.