Ursa Major Wins $10.9 Million Air Force Option for Hypersonic Engine Development
Ursa Major says the Air Force Research Laboratory exercised a $10.9 million contract option to continue work on its Draper liquid rocket engine. The funding follows flight tests under the same contract.
The Air Force Research Laboratory has exercised a $10.9 million option on Ursa Major's contract to continue developing its Draper rocket engine, the Colorado company announced Thursday.
Draper is a storable liquid rocket engine designed for hypersonic applications. The new option continues development work under an existing contract rather than announcing a completed operational weapon.
Ursa Major says the funding follows successful flights of the Affordable Rapid Missile Demonstrator under the same contract. The company has described Draper as a throttleable engine intended for tactical use.
The company also develops the Hadley liquid rocket engine and the HAVOC missile system. It says its hypersonic systems have flown more than a dozen times, a company-reported figure that covers its wider portfolio rather than this new contract option alone.
The announcement did not give a delivery date for an operational system or say the new funding marks a production order. The award supports continued engine development.