Aerojet Rocketdyne and the Energy Department‘s National Energy Technology Laboratory will continue to develop air-breathing rotating detonation engine technology intended for natural gas-fueled power plants under a $6.8 million follow-on cooperative agreement. The new agreement comes under the second phase of a DOE program that seeks to build on Aerojet Rocketdyne‘s RED development efforts with University of Michigan, Purdue University, University of […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne has completed additional tests on a development engine for a NASA launch vehicle at the Stennis Space Center to check the engine’s capacity to withstand a challenging operational environment. Aerojet Rocketdyne said Thursday the RS-25 engine dubbed 0528 that NASA will use for the Space Launch System ran for 420 seconds on power levels that range from 80 percent to […] More

NASA has awarded Aerojet Rocketdyne a contract to support the technology maturity of a CubeSat “green” propulsion system that works to boost maneuverability, safety and performance compared with systems using traditional hydrazine propellants. Aerojet Rocketdyne said Thursday the AF-M315E green propellant for the MPS-130 propulsion system serves to drive CubeSat and SmallSat development in terms of mission life extension, architecture resiliency and ability to perform proximity […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne and Sierra Nevada Corp. have partnered to conduct an architectural study for a deep space habitat system. Sierra Nevada is one of the six contractors selected by NASA to perform research and development work on prototypes of habitation systems under the agency’s Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnership-2 program. “We look forward to working with […] More

Sierra Nevada Corporation has awarded Aerojet Rocketdyne a contract to provide an electrical power system for the former’s Dream Chaser commercial spacecraft designated by NASA to transport cargo to and from the International Space Station. Aerojet Rocketdyne said Tuesday it will design, create, test and install the electrical power system onto Dream Chaser as well as provide power conversion and […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne has conducted a series of hot-fire tests on three reaction control system engines for the propulsion system of Boeing‘s Crew Space Transportation-100 service module. The CST-100 Starliner engines were tested up to 4,000 pulses and 1,600 seconds at NASA‘s White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, Aerojet Rocketdyne said Monday. Eileen Drake, Aerojet Rocketdyne president and CEO, said the tests […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne has conducted another acceptance test on the RS-68A, a liquid-fueled booster engine that propels United Launch Alliance‘s Delta IV launch vehicle. The company’s Center of Excellence for Large Liquid Rocket Engine Assembly and Test administered the three-minute hot-fire test on the engine at NASA‘s Stennis Space Center, Aerojet Rocketdyne said Friday. The test works to assess engine performance […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne has appointed Arjun Kampani to serve as the company’s vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary beginning April 11. Kampani, who previously held the same roles at General Dynamics‘ land systems unit, will bring almost 20 years of legal, advisory and business leadership experience in the aerospace and defense sector, Aerojet Rocketdyne said Wednesday. Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO […] More

An Aerojet Rocketdyne-built propulsion system has supported Lockheed Martin‘s PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement missile during a U.S. Army-led flight test at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico on Thursday. Aerojet Rocketdyne said Thursday its MSE propulsion system integrated on the PAC-3 MSE missile works to function as a rocket motor and provide energy management support to the […] More

Aerojet Rocketdyne has completed initial on-orbit validation tests of its upgraded XR-5 Hall Thruster using Boeing‘s X-37 unmanned space plane as part of the U.S. Air Force‘s Orbital Test Vehicle mission 4. The five-kilowatt XR-5A Hall Thruster includes performance and operating range modifications based on the results of XR-5’s initial low-rate production and flight programs, Aerojet Rocketdyne said July 1. […] More

Jim Taiclet, chairman, president and CEO of Lockheed Martin and a 2022 Wash100 Award recipient, said the company could explore other merger and acquisition opportunities if the Aerojet Rocketdyne deal fails to materialize, Breaking Defense reported Thursday. In late January, the Federal Trade Commission filed a suit to block Lockheed’s planned $4.4 billion acquisition of […] More

Jim Taiclet, chairman, president and CEO of Lockheed Martin, has received the first Wash100 Award of his long federal career for sustaining company growth through acquisition deals and contract wins, promoting support to supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic, and advancing military technology and 5G. Visit Wash100.com to cast a vote for Jim Taiclet as the most significant executive of consequence to the GovCon sector. 

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