[lamontcg]

The Air Force was studying RTLS as part of the ARES (Affordable REsponsive Spacelift) program in 2005 (Which was the result of 1992/1994-era discussions on "spacecast 2020"):

https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2005-6682

Lars and Beschet wrote their groundbreaking paper on lossless convexification of the powered descent problem at JPL before Lars went to SpaceX:

http://www.larsblackmore.com/CarsonAcikmeseBlackmoreACC11.pd...

[inemesitaffia]

Blue Origin landed first, where was that from?

And I don't see any rocket actually coming back with an orbital payload? Where's the demonstrator? Like that quiet supersonic thing Lockheed is demonstrating.

Even Lars didn't deliver at the first attempt. So it's not like it was something available off the shelf. Like some cryptography library you include in your code.

[lamontcg]

NASA was also considering reusable two stage to orbit for the shuttle back in the 1960s. By 1998 NASA was proposing Liquid Flyback Boosters:

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19980237254/downloads/19...

Those were still winged boosters, but were not helicopter-caught and did RTLS.

Musk didn't invent the concept.

[inemesitaffia]

You can write papers all you want.

I know only one company landing orbital boosters.