The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and Ursa Major have successfully completed a critical follow-on flight of the Affordable Rapid Missile Demonstrator (ARMD). Powered by the Draper liquid rocket engine, this latest mission expands the vehicle’s flight envelope and confirms the ability to execute rapid operational turnarounds for essential defense hardware-occurring just 45 days after the platform’s initial supersonic flight.
Redefining Development Velocity
The ARMD program continues to shatter traditional aerospace timelines, maintaining an aggressive development-to-flight schedule of only eight months. This milestone highlights a significant shift toward a more agile, cost-effective “Arsenal of Freedom,” allowing for the high-speed production and deployment of rocket-powered systems.
The follow-on flight focused on broadening the mission profile, specifically testing the Draper engine’s adaptability, precision control, and performance during high-stakes phases of the flight trajectory.
“The swift technology advancements we are making in ARMD on affordable and mass-producible liquid rocket propulsion are a testament to the resolve, boldness, and strategic vision with which we are researching the unknown with discipline and rapidity, always with the all-absorbing purpose of developing revolutionary capabilities for war,” said AFRL Rocket Propulsion Chief Dr. Javier Urzay.
Also Read: Geotab and Polestar Announces Integration to Expand OEM Network for Hardware-Free Fleet Intelligence
Agile Partnerships for National Defense
As a purpose-built demonstration platform, ARMD serves as a vital proving ground for scalable propulsion technologies. By leveraging Ursa Major’s advanced manufacturing and the Draper engine’s storable, throttleable liquid design, the partnership provides the U.S. military with a potent, mass-producible deterrent.
“ARMD revolutionizes capability development for the nation’s Arsenal of Freedom through agile Public-Private Partnerships and proves that we have ingredients to rapidly design, build, integrate, and fly rocket-powered high-speed weapons fast and affordably”, said Ursa Major CEO Chris Spagnoletti.
Ursa Major remains under contract with the AFRL to further advance the flight characterization of the Draper engine, ensuring that revolutionary propulsion capabilities are ready to meet the evolving demands of modern global security.
