Firefly Aerospace Inc. reports developments in space launch, lunar transportation, orbital vehicles, and defense software for government, commercial, and national security customers. The company’s updates commonly cover Alpha launch activity, Blue Ghost lunar lander milestones, Elytra orbital-vehicle work, spacecraft production, responsive-space exercises, and mission support for U.S. defense programs.
Recurring Firefly news also includes financial results, contract awards, collaborations tied to lunar imaging and on-orbit processing, and SciTec’s AI-enabled software for missile warning, data fusion, space domain awareness, and mission-critical national security applications.
Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY) reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $110.682 million, alongside higher backlog and a narrower net loss. Revenue rose 259% year over year, while backlog reached $1.7 billion from $1.5 billion at the prior quarter-end. Net loss narrowed to $94.198 million from $133.412 million, but operating loss widened to $101.578 million from $62.193 million. Firefly expects full-year revenue of $440 million to $450 million.
Recent contracts with AST SpaceMobile exceed $1.3 billion for licensed intellectual property, engine delivery and engineering support. Other awards include a $94 million Space Force radar contract and a $13 million Mars mission subcontract. Firefly extended Lockheed Martin's agreement for up to 25 Alpha launches through 2031 and signed its first European launch contracts. Its expanded, grant-funded spacecraft cleanroom is operating, supporting simultaneous assembly and integration of up to 12 vehicles.
Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY) signed an agreement with Synspective for up to 10 Alpha rocket launches through 2030.
Each mission will carry two of Synspective's StriX synthetic aperture radar satellites, which use radar for Earth observation, deploying up to 20 satellites in total. Launches under the agreement will use Pad-0A at Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, providing access to a range of orbital inclinations.
Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY) was selected as a vendor for NASA’s CLPS 2 initiative, enabling competition for lunar delivery task orders. The $10 billion Commercial Lunar Payload Services contract has a 10-year ordering period; vendor selection is not an award of that amount to Firefly.
Blue Ghost Mission 1 landed on the Moon and completed all mission objectives in March 2025. Since that landing, Firefly has won four additional CLPS 1 missions and a contract for NASA’s MoonFall mission. The company is increasing Blue Ghost lander and Elytra orbiter production in an expanded cleanroom accommodating up to 12 spacecraft. It is also developing a larger lander for heavier lunar cargo and using AI software following its acquisitions of SciTec and Space-ng to support autonomous operations and on-orbit data processing.
Firefly Aerospace (FLY) signed an agreement worth more than $1.3 billion to supply rocket engines and related support to AST SpaceMobile.
The three-year agreement covers 27 Miranda engines and nine vacuum-variant Vira engines for AST SpaceMobile’s first three heavy-lift rockets, engineering support, and a license to manufacture the engines. Firefly retains full ownership of its engine intellectual property and will continue serving government and commercial launch customers.
Payment consists of cash and AST Class A common stock, with the shares subject to various lock-up periods. Firefly plans to use the additional funds to expand hiring, procure long-lead materials and equipment, and add infrastructure, including multiple new test bays in Briggs, Texas, to accelerate its own launch vehicle production and technology roadmap.
AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) plans to build its own 20-ton Blacklift rocket using engines from Firefly Aerospace (FLY) for satellite deployment. Designed for reusability, Blacklift would carry up to five BlueBird satellites per launch starting in late 2028.
AST SpaceMobile signed an agreement for engines for its first three rockets and three years of engineering services, and will acquire a perpetual license to manufacture Miranda and Vira engines at a new U.S. facility. License consideration is approximately $800 million, comprising $400 million cash and 10 to 14 million Class A shares, determined by a forward volume-weighted average price calculation. Engine deliveries and engineering services each cost $250 million. External launch providers will remain in use, with agreements covering over 100 BlueBird satellites expected to be deployed cumulatively between 2027 and 2028.
Firefly Aerospace (FLY) subsidiary SciTec achieved an operational milestone for the U.S. Space Force’s Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution (FORGE) system.
FORGE now incorporates data from Space Systems Command’s Wide Field of View spacecraft in geostationary Earth orbit. The integration adds infrared sensor data to information SciTec processes from other missile warning and tracking satellites. The milestone advances SciTec’s $259 million FORGE Enterprise OPIR Solution contract for mission software that turns raw sensor data into actionable information. It follows FORGE’s second operational acceptance in September 2025, which fully transitioned mission data processing and framework services into operations.
Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY) completed the preliminary design review for its Elytra spacecraft for NASA’s MoonFall mission to the lunar south pole.
The review confirmed that Elytra’s design meets mission requirements. Firefly will now work toward the final critical design review before hardware production and assembly. The milestone came less than four months after contract award. MoonFall is targeted to be ready for launch by late 2028. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is building the drones and managing the mission, while NASA will source the launch vehicle. Elytra will carry the drones from Earth orbit to lunar orbit and deploy them above the south pole.
Firefly Aerospace (FLY) will release its third quarter 2026 financial results on November 10, 2026, after market close. The results cover the period ended September 30, 2026.
A conference call will follow that day at 4:00 p.m. CT / 5:00 p.m. ET. A live webcast and replay, the results release, and supporting materials will be available in the Investors section of the company’s website.
Firefly Aerospace (FLY) subsidiary SciTec expanded its U.S. Air Force Cloud-Based Command and Control contract by $1.5 million to integrate counter-drone sensor feeds.
The extension brings the total contract value to $31 million. SciTec will add approved counter-unmanned aerial system sensor data sources to its existing data fusion system, which combines sensor information for mission partners. The work supports the Air Force’s Advanced Battle Management System. SciTec says the expanded data layer supports improved situational awareness and decision-making.
Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY) signed a commercial payload agreement with Starcloud to demonstrate AI computing aboard its Elytra spacecraft in lunar orbit.
Starcloud’s SC-1L payload will process data from Firefly’s Solux vision system and transmit processed data to Earth, testing capabilities for a future lunar data center. The payload is being onboarded to Firefly’s third lunar mission, targeted to launch no earlier than 2028. Elytra will first provide transfer and communications support for the Blue Ghost lander’s mission to the Moon’s Gruithuisen Domes under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative. After that mission is completed, Elytra will remain in lunar orbit for five years for customer payload and imaging operations, including Starcloud’s demonstration.