ST. LOUIS, Oct. 03, 2006 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today confirmed that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has granted anti-trust clearance to proceed toward closure of the United Launch Alliance (ULA) joint venture. The clearance is subject to compliance with a consent order that both parties have approved, and which will govern certain activities of the ULA, Boeing and Lockheed Martin upon closing of the transaction.

The FTC action is the final step in the government's regulatory process and brings the ULA closer to the goal of meeting the government's need for reliable, lower-cost launch services for national security, civil and scientific payloads. Boeing expects that the remaining requirements will be successfully resolved to enable the transaction to be completed and ULA operations to begin.

The ULA venture was first announced on May 2, 2005, as a joint venture that combines the production, engineering, test and launch operations associated with U.S. government launches of Boeing Delta and Lockheed Martin Atlas rockets. The ULA mission will be to produce cost-savings to the government by combining facilities, eliminating duplicative capabilities and streamlining rocket manufacturing and launch processing.