SpaceX wins $102 million Air Force contract to transport military cargo and humanitarian aid around the world in a rocket

• The US Air Force has awarded SpaceX a $102 million contract to help deliver cargo and aid worldwide.
• It's part of a program which will look at using large commercial rockets for the US military.

SpaceX has won a US Air Force contract worth more than $102 million to help transport military cargo and humanitarian aid around the world using a heavy rocket, SpaceNews first reported.

The contract is part of the Air Force's Rocket Cargo program which involves looking at the use of big commercial rockets for Department of Defense global logistics, according to a US government website, System for Award Management.

The website says the contract was awarded Friday but wasn't made public until Tuesday.

The contract doesn't specify which SpaceX rockets will be used for the program, Greg Spanjers, Rocket Cargo program manager, told SpaceNews.

The Air Force and SpaceX didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comments made outside of US operating hours.

Spanjers told SpaceNews that the DoD is interested in being able to deliver cargo anywhere in the world in order to support humanitarian aid.

The Air Force will collect the environmental data needed for the program from SpaceX launches and landings, Spanjers told SpaceNews.

The majority of locations where disasters happen don't have commercial spaceports nearby, Spanjers told SpaceNews, adding that the Air Force is exploring a large range of landing options for rural sites.

Spanjers told SpaceNews that the Air Force is looking at awarding other launch vehicle providers contracts in the future to help with the program.