May 30, 2020
Firefly Aerospace team continues its structures flight acceptance testing, namely, of a first stage Kerosene Rocket Propellant (RP) tank at the test facilities, built entirely in house. According to the post by Mark Watt, the test is scheduled to last until 3 AM, which is what it takes to get to space.

 
 

May 25, 2020 
Mark Watt posted several new photos of the Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg AFB, which is being adapted to support the launch of the Alpha LV.

 

May 21, 2020
The Alpha Launch Control Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base is fully operational.

 

May 12, 2020
Firefly Aerospace is in the process of acceptance testing all of the elements and systems for Alpha Flight 1. On May 8, the Stage 1 liquid oxygen (LOx) tank successfully passed acceptance testing. Alpha uses the world’s largest all-composite LOx tank, which allows Firefly to create the lightest, strongest, and lowest cost tanks in its class. Acceptance testing involved loading the tank with cryogenic liquid nitrogen and applying 250,000 pounds of axial force to the tank using Firefly’s new state of the art structural test stand.

May 8, 2020
Firefly Aerospace is preparing Reaver engines for integration with Alpha Flight 1. Engines are acceptance tested on the horizontal test stand. A video of the startup sequence of an engine can be viewed on the official Twitter page.

 
 

May 6, 2020
Firefly Aerospace has passed all quality audit requirements and received its AS9100 certification, the widely adopted and standardized benchmark designed to ensure quality management practices across the aerospace industry. According to the company's CEO, Dr. Thomas Markusic, this is a key milestone in the maturation of Firefly as it moves from development into the production phase of its Alpha vehicle, and the company is well-positioned to take on new contracts and development opportunities. Additionally, Firefly requires all suppliers to be AS9100 certified, which has bolstered its quality assurance program as qualification tests this spring lead to full production capabilities. Firefly will leverage its AS9100-certified quality assurance program in support of a broad range of spacecraft, including its Alpha launch vehicle, Beta launch vehicle, Genesis lunar lander, and Orbital Transfer Vehicle.

 

May 5, 2020
Noosphere Ventures has published the Q1 2020 edition of Venture Investments in Space Market. According to public figures collected by Noosphere Venture Partners, 42 rounds were closed in Q1 2020, with a total investment of $1.2B. Nearly 93 funds participated in the funding. Most of the closed deals were early-stage VC and later-stage VC as well. Half of the companies (52%) which received investment are in the US. Compared to Q4 2019 numbers, the European market share decreased by 4%. Among the top 3 biggest deals of Q1 2020 are two rounds of investments in SpaceX: $314m and $221m for its three main projects: Starlink satellite constellation, Starship super-heavy launch vehicle, and Crew Dragon capsule for transporting astronauts, and the third deal is the $111m investment in Kinéis for the development of its constellation of 25 nanosatellites and construction of 20 ground stations.

 
   
 

NOTE: Firefly Aerospace, Cedar Park, Texas, is a member of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Washington, D.C.