Firefly Aerospace Selected By NASA To Provide Launch For Commercial Lunar Payloads

Firefly Aerospace, Inc. (Firefly), a provider of economical, and dependable launch vehicles, spacecraft and in-space services, have announced that they have been selected by NASA for the award of a Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contract. The principal purpose of NASA’s CLPS program is to acquire end-to-end commercial payload services between the Earth and the lunar surface for NASA Headquarters’ Science, Human Exploration and Operations, and Space Technology Mission Directorates (SMD, HEOMD, and STMD). The CLPS contractor(s) shall provide all activities necessary to safely integrate, accommodate, transport, and operate NASA payloads using contractor-provided assets, including launch vehicles, lunar lander spacecraft, lunar surface systems, Earth re-entry vehicles, and associated resources.

With this initial CLPS competitive procurement, NASA has made multiple awards of Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts with the ability to issue Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) task orders. The contracts will have an effective ordering period of 10 years from the contract’s effective date of 2 January 2019 or sooner. The maximum cumulative value of all CLPS task order awards is U.S.$2.6 billion over the life of the contract. The multiple CLPS contract award winners are now eligible to compete for specific task order awards including the first commercially provided NASA science payload delivery mission to the Moon. The start of the competition for the first CLPS full lunar mission task order award is expected to be announced by NASA in the near future.

“This contract award recognizes Firefly’s viable technical approach to deliver NASA science payloads and other commercial cargo to the lunar surface, along with the viability of its business plan and financial resources to develop Firefly’s CLPS system,” said Firefly CEO Dr. Tom Markusic. “In conjunction with our Beta launch vehicle and our partnership with Intuitive Machines, Firefly will provide an integrated lunar services offering, from the launch pad to the surface of the Moon. We are honored to partner with NASA in an extraordinary effort that will broaden humanity’s knowledge of the cosmos and inspire a new generation of space entrepreneurs.”

Firefly is developing a family of launch vehicles and in-space services that provide industry-leading affordability, convenience and reliability. Firefly’s launch vehicles utilize common technologies, manufacturing infrastructure and launch capabilities, providing LEO launch solutions for up to four metric tons of payload. Combined with Firefly’s in-space services, Firefly provides the space industry with access to frequent launches at the lowest cost/kg, enabling ambitious commercial and exploration missions from LEO to the Moon. Headquartered in Cedar Park, TX, Firefly has additional presence in Washington, D.C., Dnipro, Ukraine and Tokyo, Japan. Firefly is financed by Noosphere Ventures of Menlo Park, CA.