lift launcher Taurus II with Andrews, PlanetSpace and Spacehab being eliminated on funding concerns. Following the original $500M Space Act Agreement, an additional $288M in "augmentation" funding was awarded to the two contractors before the demonstration flights. Program conclusion The COTS program was successfully concluded in November 2013 after two companies, SpaceX and Orbital Sciences, designed, built and launched "a pair of new spacecraft on rockets that also were newly designed". NASA has published its own history of the COTS program including the controlling of the development program using Space Act Agreements (SAA), with lessons for future programs. Awards Rocketplane Kistler — originally awarded contract worth $207 million; Rocketplane Kistler received only $32.1 million before NASA terminated their contract for failure to complete milestones in October 2007. SpaceX — awarded contract worth $278 million; in 2011 additional milestones were added bringing the total contract value to $396 million. On May 22, 2012 SpaceX COTS Demo Flight 2 completed the NASA and SpaceX Space Act Agreement. Falcon 9 #3 flew capsule Dragon C2+ to the International Space Station. After rendezvousing, berthing and unloading the capsule successfully reentered landing in the Pacific Ocean. Orbital Sciences Corporation — awarded contract worth $170 million in the second round in February 2008; in 2011 additional milestones were added bringing the total contract value to $288 million. The Antares (rocket) made its maiden flight lifting a payload mass simulator to low Earth orbit (LEO) on April 21, 2013. On September 18, 2013, Antares successfully launched a Cygnus spacecraft to rendezvous with the International Space Station. Competitors More than twenty organizations submitted COTS proposals in March 2006 of which twenty were publicly disclosed. NASA received new COTS proposals from at least seven firms by November 21, 2007. Commercial Resupply Services On December 22, 2008, NASA stated they would discuss the contract selection to provide commercial cargo resupply services for the International Space Station. NASA announced the awarding of contracts to both SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation in a press conference on December 23, 2008. The contracts include a minimum of 20 missions, 12 missions for SpaceX ($1.6 Billion) and 8 missions for Orbital Sciences ($1.9 Billion). PlanetSpace submitted a protest to the Government Accountability Office after receiving a NASA debriefing on the outcome of the award. On April 22, 2009 GAO publicly released its decision to deny the protest. See also Cargo spacecraft Commercial Crew Development Commercial