&gt;When ULA was formed, Boeing and Lockheed were not only battling each other for launch contracts, they were also locked in a legal battle over rocket technology. For the Pentagon, the joint-venture was a way to settle the bad blood between its top contractors and make sure that both could remain in the space launch business. ...<p>&gt; In his remarks, Tobey referred to that payment — about $800 million per year — as a carrot to “sweeten the deal” for the “shotgun wedding” the Pentagon forced on Boeing and Lockheed. ...<p>&gt; Shelby continues to defend the original concept of ULA, noting that Boeing and Lockheed were battling each other in court over rocket technology before the merger.<p>&gt;“There was a lot of trouble at one time between Boeing and Lockheed,” Shelby noted in a brief interview.<p>Strange that the article never comes out and says it: Boeing committed industrial espionage and bribed Air Force procurement officials.<p><a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.seattletimes.com&#x2F;business&#x2F;boeing-probe-intensifies-over-secret-lockheed-papers&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.seattletimes.com&#x2F;business&#x2F;boeing-probe-intensifie...</a><p><a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;query.nytimes.com&#x2F;gst&#x2F;fullpage.html?res=9802E2D9103BF937A35751C0A9639C8B63" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;query.nytimes.com&#x2F;gst&#x2F;fullpage.html?res=9802E2D9103BF...</a><p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.justice.gov&#x2F;archive&#x2F;opa&#x2F;pr&#x2F;2006&#x2F;June&#x2F;06_civ_412.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.justice.gov&#x2F;archive&#x2F;opa&#x2F;pr&#x2F;2006&#x2F;June&#x2F;06_civ_412....</a>