The company’s first Alpha rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on September 2, 2021.
Firefly Aerospace
WASHINGTON – Firefly Aerospace aims to make a second attempt to orbit with an Alpha rocket in the coming weeks, after receiving government approval to resume launch operations after a controversial investor sell its shares.
Firefly CEO Tom Markusic told CNBC that the company “worked methodically and in partnership with the government” to both complete the divestment and add “security protocols” at the company.
Once the migration is complete, Markusic said the company now has “full access to our facilities to roll back and launch.” Next, Firefly will transport the second Alpha rocket from its headquarters near Austin, Texas, to California and aim to launch as soon as possible.
“We think it’s going to be about eight weeks from here – so May is our target,” Markusic told CNBC.
Last month, private equity firm AE Industrial Partners acquired a stake in Firefly from Noosphere Ventures, a fund run by Max Polyakov, a Ukrainian software entrepreneur who is banned by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, or CFIUS. , operating. The nature of the government’s concern about Polyakov is unclear. Polyakov has said that his interest in Firefly stems from a desire to keep the technology out of Russia’s reach, according to Bloomberg.
The government has halted Firefly launch operations at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California until Polyakov’s venture divests its reported 50% stake. The divestment took place late last month, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Firefly also closed a $75 million fundraiser led by AE Industrial Partners, which Markusic said means the company’s broader growth plans are “fully funded.”
AEI partner Kirk Konert said owning shares and the company’s investment in Firefly is because they see the company as a “clear leader” in the rocket business.
“We think Firefly is going to be a market leader of this size in the launch market,” Konert told CNBC, adding that the company is “taking a broader view of space transportation.” spaceship” with a move towards a larger rocket called Beta, a rover, and a lunar lander.
Konert declined to determine Firefly’s valuation after the funding round, but said it represents an increase from the company’s previous valuation of just over $1 billion in May 2021.
Firefly’s Alpha rocket, which is 95 feet tall, is designed to launch 1,000 kilograms of payload into low Earth orbit — at a price of $15 million per launch. This puts Firefly in the category of “medium lift” rockets, compared to a number of other companies including By Richard Branson Virgin Orbit, ABL Space and Relative space.
firefly Launch of Alpha rocket for the first time in September, but the attempt to reach orbit failed in flight. One of the rocket’s four engines stopped working due to an electrical connection problem, a problem that Markusic said was “like a stroke of luck” and “very simple to solve.”
“The second flight is really a repeat of the first flight,” Markusic said. “We’re confident we won’t have that problem again.”
The company aims to launch the third Alpha mission, which will be for NASA, about two months after the second mission.
Firefly plans to use the new funding to fund more Alpha rocket launches, develop more larger Beta rockets, fund Blue Ghost lunar lander and continue work on a vehicle. space utility – also known as a “space tug” – to transport satellites into a single orbit after launch. The company says its Blue Ghost lander recently completed a significant design review, with Firefly winning a $93 million contract from NASA to carry payloads to the lunar surface. in 2023.
