Northrop Grumman Invests $50 Million in Private Space Firm Firefly Aerospace

On May 29, Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) announced that it has invested $50 million into Firefly Aerospace to further expand production of their co-developed medium launch vehicle, Eclipse.

Northrop and Firefly will continue to develop their Eclipse flight hardware with qualification testing underway. Eclipse has already gone through more than 60 Miranda engine hot fire tests to date. The medium launch vehicle will enter an untapped market equipped to deliver 16,300 kg of cargo to low Earth orbit or 3,200 kg of cargo to geosynchronous transfer orbit. Eclipse is expected to launch in early 2026 from Wallops Island, Virginia. The space vehicle will support space station resupply, commercial spacecraft, critical national security missions, and scientific payloads for the domestic and international markets.

“Eclipse gives customers the right balance between payload capacity and affordability. Our partnership with Firefly builds on our capacity to provide crucial space-based communication, observation, and exploration for civil and national security customers,” said Wendy Williams, vice president of launch and missile defense systems at Northrop Grumman.

A launch pad atop a grassy hill, smoke filled sky from a successful voyage to space.

The CEO of Firefly Aerospace, Jason Kim, mentioned that Eclipse has a 16 metric-ton orbit capability, which will attract programs such as NSSL Lane 1 and is a natural fit to launch proliferated constellations in LEO, MEO, GEO, and TLI. Eclipse uses the same first stage technology developed for Antares 330 and retains a scaled-up version of Alpha’s propulsion systems, helping the team to build and test the space vehicle.

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) is a global aerospace and defense technology company. The company operates through four segments, including Aeronautics Systems, Defense Systems, Mission Systems, and Space Systems.

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