Cedar Park, Texas, August 7, 2024 – Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it signed a multi-launch agreement with L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) for up to 20 launches on Firefly’s Alpha rocket, including two to four missions per year from 2027 to 2031 depending on customer needs. The new agreement is in addition to Firefly’s existing multi-launch agreement with L3Harris for three Alpha missions in 2026.

“The Firefly team is proud to build on our existing relationship with L3Harris and serve as a long-term launch provider for their robust satellite systems,” said Peter Schumacher, Interim CEO at Firefly Aerospace. “Firefly continues to see growing demand for Alpha’s responsive small-lift services, and we’re committed to providing a dedicated launch option that takes our customers directly to their preferred orbits.”

Under the agreement, Firefly’s Alpha rocket will launch L3Harris spacecraft into low-Earth orbit from Firefly’s SLC-2 launch site at the Vandenberg Space Force Base. Alpha supports the responsive space needs of both government and commercial customers with the ability to provide direct, on-demand deliveries for satellites up to 1,030 kg.

Following the most recent Alpha launch for NASA, Firefly continues to accelerate vehicle production. The company’s latest facility expansion in Briggs, Texas, including a new automated fiber placement machine, allows the team to rapidly build and test Alpha’s carbon composite structures in a matter of days versus weeks.

About Firefly Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace is an end-to-end space transportation company with launch, lunar, and on-orbit services. Headquartered in central Texas, Firefly is a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners (“AEI”) focused on delivering responsive, reliable, and affordable space access for government and commercial customers. Firefly’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles provide the space industry with a single source for missions from low Earth orbit to the surface of the Moon and beyond.

Source: Firefly Aerospace

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif., – July 4, 2024 – Firefly Aerospace, an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it successfully launched its Alpha Flight 5 (FLTA005) rocket and completed the payload deployment sequence as part of the company’s Venture-Class Launch Services Demonstration 2 (VCLS Demo 2) contract with NASA.

The mission, called Noise of Summer, lifted off from Firefly’s SLC-2 launch site at the Vandenberg Space Force Base at 9:04 p.m. PDT on July 3, 2024. Following payload deployment, Firefly successfully performed a second stage relight and plane change maneuver to further test and validate Alpha’s on-orbit capabilities.

“The Firefly team knocked it out of the park,” said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “As a NASA vendor for both launch and lunar services, we look forward to continuing this partnership and supporting the agency’s larger space exploration goals from Earth to the Moon and beyond.”

As a NASA VCLS Demo 2 task order, the successful mission further validates Alpha’s capabilities to provide small satellite launches for NASA on a recurring basis. The mission’s CubeSats were selected through NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI) that provides U.S. educational institutions and nonprofits with low-cost access to space.

“The launch of Firefly Aerospace’s demonstration mission marks one more way NASA is innovating for the benefit of humanity,” said Hamilton Fernandez, mission manager for NASA’s Launch Services Program. “NASA is using CubeSat missions to demonstrate the capability of small rockets and build relationships with this new part of the U.S. launch vehicle industry.” At the time of this release, ongoing activities are underway by NASA and the CubeSat teams as they work to acquire signals for all satellites. Additional updates will be posted to the mission webpage.

Looking ahead, Firefly is in the final testing phase for its next Alpha launch, FLTA006, in support of a dedicated commercial mission for Lockheed Martin. The Firefly team is concurrently ramping up for a responsive on-orbit Elytra mission that will launch on Alpha FLTA007 later this year while also working to complete the final readiness milestones for its first Blue Ghost mission to the Moon launching in Q4 2024.

About Firefly Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace is an end-to-end space transportation company with launch, lunar, and on-orbit services. Headquartered in central Texas, Firefly is a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners (“AEI”) focused on delivering responsive, reliable, and affordable space access for government and commercial customers. Firefly’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles provide the space industry with a single source for missions from low Earth orbit to the surface of the Moon and beyond.

Source: Firefly Aerospace

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif., June 21, 2024 – Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced its Alpha Flight 5 (FLTA005) mission, called Noise of Summer, is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 26. The 30-minute launch window will open at 9 p.m. PST.

“The Firefly team has rapidly matured our Alpha rocket and our responsive launch operations to deliver the dependable one-metric-ton rocket the market is demanding,” said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “We’re proud to support this NASA mission that will not only prove out the capabilities of Alpha as a repeatable, reliable launch vehicle, but also advance our mission of making space for everyone by supporting some incredible student-led CubeSat initiatives.”

Launching from Firefly’s SLC-2 complex at the Vandenberg Space Force Base, Alpha FLTA005 supports Firefly’s Venture-Class Launch Services Demo 2 contract with NASA that serves to validate the capabilities of launch vehicles that support a new launch class and provide more access to space for small satellites and spacecraft. The mission will deploy the following eight payloads selected through NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative, providing U.S. educational institutions and nonprofits with low-cost access to space.

• CatSat – University of Arizona: CatSat is a technology demonstration of an inflatable antenna for high-speed communications. After reaching low Earth orbit, CatSat’s antenna will deploy and inflate to a diameter of just over one-and-a-half feet to transmit high-definition Earth photos to X-band ground stations at approximately 50 megabits per second, more than 5 times faster than typical home internet speeds.
• KUbeSat-1 ­­- University of Kansas: KUbeSat-1 will demonstrate a new method to measure the energy and species of primary cosmic rays hitting Earth utilizing a Cosmic Ray Detector. The payload will also utilize High-Altitude Calibration technology to research very high frequency signals generated by cosmic ray interactions with the atmosphere.
• MESAT1 – University of Maine: MESAT1 is a climate focused payload that will identify urban heat islands, determine concentration of phytoplankton in water bodies, and help predict harmful algal blooms. Four multispectral cameras on board will relay the data down to University of Maine’s ground station for further processing.
• R5-S4 and R5-S2-2.0 – NASA’s Johnson Space Center: R5-S4 and R5-S2 will be the first in a line of R5 spacecrafts launched to orbit, featuring Rendezvous and Proximity Operations Fiducial AprilTags to solve the problem of relative navigation between spacecraft. R5-S4 will also demonstrate a “spacecraft license plate” with a small blinking light that continuously flashes a unique number that can be read with a small telescope on the ground to identify and better track satellites among tens of thousands of objects currently in orbit.
• Serenity 3 – Teachers in Space: Licensed as an amateur radio broadcaster, Serenity 3 includes a suite of data sensors and a camera that will send data back to Earth and communicate with radios on the ground, allowing anyone with a ham radio to “talk” to Serenity.
• SOC-i – University of Washington: Satellite for Optimal Control and Imaging (SOC-i) will test an algorithm aimed at supporting autonomous operations with constrained attitude guidance maneuvers computed in real-time aboard the spacecraft. The payload utilizes uses optimization-based attitude guidance methods to compute trajectories in real-time that meet a set of five constraints throughout the maneuvers.
• TechEdSat-11 (TES-11) – NASA Ames Research Center: TES-11 will conduct several technology demonstrations, including an exo-brake with a deployable parachute-like device aimed at reducing CubeSat de-orbit times, and BrainStack-3, a graphics processing unit and neuromorphic processors that allow for artificial intelligence experiments in low Earth orbit. TES-11 is part of a series of collaborative missions called TechEdSat that pair university students with NASA researchers to evaluate new technologies for use in small satellites while providing student mentorship opportunities with engineers at NASA’s Ames Research Center.

“Through innovative technology partnerships, NASA provides these CubeSat developers a low-cost pathway to conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations in space,” said Hamilton Fernandez, mission manager with NASA’s Launch Services Program. “NASA benefits by having a mechanism for low-cost technology development and scientific research to help bridge strategic knowledge gaps and accelerate flight-qualified technology. The students benefit through hands on experience, which develops the future workforce of the U.S. space industry.”

Alpha FLTA005 and Firefly’s future Alpha launches will continue to be performed as responsive space operations that are observed by members of the U.S. Space Force Tactically Responsive Space team to further define the training, infrastructure, and operational requirements for repeatable, on-demand launch capabilities. During the final launch operations, Firefly will transport the payload fairing to the launch pad and mate it to Firefly’s Alpha rocket within hours of the scheduled liftoff, compared to weeks in a typical operation.

About Firefly Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace is an end-to-end space transportation company with launch, lunar, and on-orbit services. Headquartered in central Texas, Firefly is a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners (“AEI”) focused on delivering responsive, reliable, and affordable space access for government and commercial customers. Firefly’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles provide the space industry with a single source for missions from low Earth orbit to the surface of the Moon and beyond.

Source: Firefly Aerospace

Cedar Park, Texas, June 5, 2024 – Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, today announced it signed a multi-launch agreement with Lockheed Martin for 25 launches on Firefly’s Alpha rocket through 2029. This agreement commits Lockheed Martin to 15 launch reservations and 10 optional launches.

“Firefly is honored to continue this partnership with Lockheed Martin and appreciates their confidence in our rapid launch services to support their critical missions for years to come,” said Bill Weber, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “The Firefly team has scaled up Alpha production and testing and significantly streamlined our launch operations to fly Alpha more frequently and responsively. This allows us to continue delivering the one metric ton rocket the industry is demanding.”

Under the agreement, Alpha will launch Lockheed Martin spacecraft into low-Earth orbit from Firefly’s facilities on the west and east coast. The first mission will launch on Alpha flight 6 (FLTA006) from Firefly’s SLC-2 launch site at the Vandenberg Space Force Base later this year. The mission will be conducted as another responsive space operation that includes transporting the payload fairing to the launch pad, mating it to Firefly’s Alpha rocket, and completing final launch operations within hours of the scheduled liftoff.

“Our customers have told us they need rapid advancement of new mission capabilities,” said Bob Behnken, Director, Ignite Technology Acceleration at Lockheed Martin Space. “This agreement with Firefly further diversifies our access to space, allowing us to continue quickly flight demonstrating the cutting-edge technology we are developing for them, as well as enabling our continued exploration of tactical and responsive space solutions.”

Built with lightweight carbon composites and patented propulsion technologies, Firefly’s Alpha rocket provides low-cost launch services for satellites up to 1,030 kg and supports the growing demand for responsive space missions when and where customers need to fly.

About Firefly Aerospace

Firefly Aerospace is an end-to-end space transportation company with launch, lunar, and on-orbit services. Headquartered in central Texas, Firefly is a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners (“AEI”) focused on delivering responsive, reliable, and affordable space access for government and commercial customers. Firefly’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles provide the space industry with a single source for missions from low Earth orbit to the surface of the Moon and beyond.

Source: Firefly Aerospace