Firefly Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace Selected to Demonstrate Launch and On-Orbit Services for U.S. Defense Innovation Unit

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Donnerstag, März 21, 2024

Dark, Environment, Geosynchronous orbit, Alpha, Moon, Elytron, Firefly Aerospace, GEO, NRO, DARPA, Defense, Communications satellite

CEDAR PARK, Texas, March 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to conduct a trade study on its capabilities to rapidly launch Firefly's Elytra vehicles and support missions beyond Geosynchronous Orbit, referred to as xGEO. Once complete, the trade study will provide the groundwork for up to two Firefly demonstration missions that will advance the DoD's responsive access to xGEO.

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Once complete, the trade study will provide the groundwork for up to two Firefly demonstration missions that will advance the DoD's responsive access to xGEO.
The contract supports the DIU's Sinequone project that aims to deliver cost-effective, responsive access to xGEO through both launch and orbital transfer services.
"Firefly is accelerating commercial growth beyond GEO with our launch, lunar, and orbital vehicles," said Jana Space, Vice President of Spacecraft.
These operations follow Firefly's recent responsive launch for the U.S. Space Force's VICTUS NOX mission that was successfully completed after a 24-hour notice.

Firefly Aerospace Announces Second Round of DREAM Payload Awardees

Retrieved on:

Mittwoch, März 6, 2024

CEDAR PARK, Texas, March 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it selected three educational payloads to launch aboard Firefly's Alpha rocket as early as 2025. As part of Firefly's DREAM (Dedicated Research Education Accelerator Mission) program, Firefly is donating excess capacity on its Alpha launch vehicle to fly CubeSats from the University of Illinois, Auburn University, and the Aerospace and Innovation Academy in Florida.

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"Firefly is dedicated to making space attainable for everyone, including our future workforce," said Shea Ferring, Chief Technology Officer at Firefly Aerospace.
The first round of DREAM payloads flew on Firefly's Alpha FLTA001 rocket in 2021.
The second round of DREAM payloads selected to fly on Alpha rockets as early as 2025 include the following three CubeSats.
A fourth DREAM payload will be announced at the 4S Symposium in May 2024.

Firefly Aerospace Doubles Facilities in Briggs, Texas to Support Medium Launch Vehicle

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Mittwoch, Februar 28, 2024

AFP, Antares (rocket), Lightning, Carbon, Antares, Grumman, Alpha, Firefly, Reaver, Firefly Aerospace

BRIGGS, Texas, Feb. 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today held an official ribbon cutting in celebration of the company's Rocket Ranch expansion in Briggs, Texas. Firefly more than doubled the size of its manufacturing facilities, added two new test stands, and installed state-of-the-art machinery to support the production of Northrop Grumman's Antares 330 and the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are co-developing together.

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BRIGGS, Texas, Feb. 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc. , an end-to-end space transportation company, today held an official ribbon cutting in celebration of the company's Rocket Ranch expansion in Briggs, Texas.
Firefly more than doubled the size of its manufacturing facilities, added two new test stands, and installed state-of-the-art machinery to support the production of Northrop Grumman's Antares 330 and the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are co-developing together.
Firefly's expanded manufacturing space from 92,000 to 207,000 square feet includes two new large-scale buildings for rocket production, assembly, and integration.
In total, Firefly now has six test stands at its Briggs location to support the robust testing performed across all vehicle lines.

Firefly Aerospace Onboarded as Launch Provider for the NRO with Alpha Rocket

Retrieved on:

Donnerstag, Januar 25, 2024

NRO, Vandenberg Space Force Base, Alpha, Carbon, Firefly Aerospace, Lifting, Firefly, SLIC, Cape, Communications satellite

CEDAR PARK, Texas, Jan. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it was selected by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to serve as a launch provider with Firefly's Alpha rocket. As part of the NRO's Streamlined Launch Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity Contract (SLIC), the agreement has a 10-year ordering period with a ceiling value of $700 million across all firm fixed-price task orders.

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CEDAR PARK, Texas, Jan. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc. , an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it was selected by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to serve as a launch provider with Firefly's Alpha rocket.
"Firefly is ready to support the NRO's responsive space needs as we continue to advance our rapid launch operations capability," said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace.
The SLIC program was established by the NRO's Office of Space Launch to leverage commercial best practices for responsive space missions and encourage competition among emerging launch providers.
SLIC is open to U.S. launch vehicles with a proven orbital record and allows providers to bid dedicated, rideshare, or multi-manifest launch services.

Firefly Aerospace Ready to Launch Alpha FLTA004 for Lockheed Martin No Earlier Than December 20

Retrieved on:

Montag, Dezember 18, 2023

Lockheed Martin, ESA, Government, Acceleration, Vandenberg Space Force Base, Lightning, SLC-2, Alpha, Firefly Aerospace, Ignite, Weather, PST, Space force, Communications satellite

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif., Dec. 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced its Alpha FLTA004 Fly the Lightning mission is prepared to launch no earlier than December 20 with backup dates through December 22, depending on local weather. The daily 20-minute launch window will open at 9:18 am PST.

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The Fly the Lightning mission will deploy an Electronically Steered Antenna (ESA) payload developed by Lockheed Martin to demonstrate rapid delivery of on-orbit capabilities for U.S. warfighters.
During the final launch operations, the team will transport the payload faring to the launch pad and mate it to Firefly's Alpha rocket using similar responsive operations to VICTUS NOX.
The launch is being observed by members of the U.S. Space Force Tactically Responsive Space team to inform future missions and the requirements for repeatable on-demand launch capabilities.
For more details on the Alpha FLTA004 Fly the Lightning mission and livestream, visit https://fireflyspace.com/missions/fly-the-lightning/ .

AE Industrial Partners Promotes Three Senior Leaders to Managing Partner

Retrieved on:

Montag, Dezember 18, 2023

AE Industrial Partners, LP (“AEI”), a private equity firm specializing in aerospace, national security, and industrial services, today announced the promotion of Charlie Compton, Kirk Konert and Jon Nemo to Managing Partner.

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AE Industrial Partners, LP (“AEI”), a private equity firm specializing in aerospace, national security, and industrial services, today announced the promotion of Charlie Compton, Kirk Konert and Jon Nemo to Managing Partner.
The appointments, which are effective immediately, expand the Managing Partnership to five members.
“As our organization continues to evolve, we believe strongly in building from within, and these promotions underscore that commitment.
Charlie Compton, who joined AEI in 2014, primarily focuses on commercial aerospace, business aviation and industrial services investments.

Firefly Aerospace Selected to Support DARPA LunA-10 with Framework for On-Orbit Spacecraft Hubs

Retrieved on:

Dienstag, Dezember 5, 2023

Elytron, Government, DARPA, Firefly Aerospace, Transport, Moon, Spacecraft, Firefly

CEDAR PARK, Texas, Dec. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it was selected to develop an analytical framework for aggregated on-orbit spacecraft hubs in support of DARPA's 10-Year Lunar Architecture (LunA-10) capability study. Based on the capabilities of Firefly's Elytra orbital vehicles, the spacecraft hubs would provide responsive tasking for a wide range of cislunar services, such as refueling, delivery, and transport.

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"Firefly is best known for finding innovative solutions to some of the most complex challenges in the industry," said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace.
"We've identified a path to drastically improve on-orbit mission response times from years to days with scalable spacecraft hubs that can host and service spacecraft across cislunar space.
Firefly's contribution will include a framework for an aggregated hub of on-orbit spacecraft that dock together and offer on-demand services to both visiting spacecraft and dispersed spacecraft across cislunar space.
"With launch, lunar, and on-orbit vehicles, Firefly is in a unique position to support DARPA's LunA-10 program," said Jana Spruce, Vice President of Spacecraft at Firefly Aerospace.

Firefly Aerospace Completes First Miranda Engine Hot Fire Test

Retrieved on:

Dienstag, November 28, 2023

Carbon, International Space Station, Lightning, Automation, Risk, Grumman, Culture, Reaver, MLV, Alpha, Antares (rocket), Firefly Aerospace, Architecture, Communications satellite, Antares, Firefly

CEDAR PARK, Texas, Nov. 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, completed the first hot fire test for its Miranda engine that will power the first stage of Northrop Grumman's Antares 330 and the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are co-developing together. The critical milestone was completed just over a year after signing the initial contract.

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CEDAR PARK, Texas, Nov. 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc. , an end-to-end space transportation company, completed the first hot fire test for its Miranda engine that will power the first stage of Northrop Grumman's Antares 330 and the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are co-developing together.
The turbopump-fed engine test further validates the design of Miranda's startup sequence, transient conditions, and tap-off engine architecture at a larger scale.
As a next step, the Firefly team will build up to a full-duration, 206-second Miranda hot fire.
"The incredible progress on our Miranda engines – designed, built, and tested in house in just over a year – is another example of Firefly setting a new standard in the industry," said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace.

Firefly Aerospace Closes Third Tranche of Series C Round, Reaching Approximately $300 Million of Financing to Date

Retrieved on:

Freitag, November 10, 2023

Belcan, Ground Intelligence Officer, Grumman, Government, Lockheed Martin, NASA, Mitsui & Co., CLPS, Alpha, LP, National Reconnaissance Office, Mitsui, Firefly Aerospace, Management, Communications satellite, Firefly, Elytron

CEDAR PARK, Texas, Nov. 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced the closing of another tranche of financing, valuing the company at $1.5 billion pre-money. The round is being led by existing investors including AE Industrial Partners, LP, as well as new investors including Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Firefly has raised approximately $300 million in funding since February 2023.

Key Points:

The round is being led by existing investors including AE Industrial Partners, LP, as well as new investors including Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Firefly has raised approximately $300 million in funding since February 2023.
"We have been successful at raising funds at an increased valuation in this challenging capital markets environment due to our focus on production and mission execution," said Bill Weber, CEO Firefly Aerospace.
"Firefly has clinched key contracts and cemented itself as the leader in tactically responsive launch," said Kirk Konert Partner at AE Industrial and Chairman of Firefly.
The Company expects to announce a close of its current financing round in the near future.

Firefly Aerospace Announces Agreement with Fleet Space to Deliver Seismic Payload to Far Side of the Moon

Retrieved on:

Mittwoch, November 8, 2023

European Space Agency, Firefly Aerospace, Australian Space Agency, SPIDER, Entrepreneurship, CLPS, Artemis Accords, Commercial Lunar Mission Support Services, Artemis, Elytron, NASA, Communications satellite, Research, Moon, Firefly

CEDAR PARK, Texas, Nov. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced a new agreement with Fleet Space Technologies, an Australian space exploration firm, to deliver and operate Fleet's Seismic Payload for Interplanetary Discovery, Exploration, and Research (SPIDER) on the far side of the Moon. In addition to payloads from NASA and the European Space Agency, the Australian-backed SPIDER payload will fly on Firefly's Blue Ghost lander as part of Firefly's second lunar mission in 2026.

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CEDAR PARK, Texas, Nov. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefly Aerospace, Inc. , an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced a new agreement with Fleet Space Technologies, an Australian space exploration firm, to deliver and operate Fleet's Seismic Payload for Interplanetary Discovery, Exploration, and Research (SPIDER) on the far side of the Moon.
In addition to payloads from NASA and the European Space Agency, the Australian-backed SPIDER payload will fly on Firefly's Blue Ghost lander as part of Firefly's second lunar mission in 2026.
"The Firefly team welcomes Fleet Space on our far side lunar mission that will serve as a critical building block for future human and robotic missions to come," said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace.
Fleet Space's SPIDER payload is part of the Australian Space Agency's Moon to Mars initiative that's aligned with NASA's Artemis program to support future habitation on the Moon.