Delta IV Heavy rocket carries U.S. spy agency payload into space VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Aug. 28 (UPI) -- A classified payload presumed to be a U.S. spy satellite blasted off from California Wednesday, the Air Force said. The Delta-IV rocket took off from Vandenberg Air Force Base north of Los Angeles carrying a satellite designated NROL-65 that belongs to the secretive National Reconnaissance Office. Details about the NROL-65 were not available; however CNN said it was one of two top-secret launches planned by the NRO this year. The United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing, said in a written statement the Delta-IV was the high-capacity "Heavy" model, which had been launched only once before from the West Coast.