Firefly emerges from bankruptcy
Capitalism in space: Firefly Aerospace, the company that was forced into bankruptcy when it lost a Virgin Galactic lawsuit for stealing their proprietary engineering, has emerged from bankruptcy.
The full article is behind a paywall, but it appears that the company includes its same management staff under a new owner.
Readers!
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Capitalism in space: Firefly Aerospace, the company that was forced into bankruptcy when it lost a Virgin Galactic lawsuit for stealing their proprietary engineering, has emerged from bankruptcy.
The full article is behind a paywall, but it appears that the company includes its same management staff under a new owner.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
This is fantastic news! Unfortunately, it remains to be seen as to whether or not they can legally pursue aerospike technology as they originally intended. I’m really surprised they were able to get more investment capital given their legal history. Does anybody know who invested and how much?
Go Firefly! Mr. Z, think they will have a payload in orbit before Virgin Galactic has a paying customer in suborbital space?
Anthony Domanico asked: “Does anybody know who invested and how much?”
Space News’s print edition (July 31) has an article that I cannot find online, “Firefly’s Second Act” The article explains that Firefly Aerospace was called Firefly Space Systems before “virtually all of the assets of the company were sold at auction.” Noosphere Ventures bought those assets, this past March, and it was also one of the creditors of Firefly Space Systems. I have not found the purchase price. I suspect that the purchase price was the amount to pay off all the other creditors, hopefully in full.
Technically, Firefly Aerospace is a new company, 100% owned by Noosphere Ventures, but in reality there is not much difference; even the president, Thomas Markusic, is the same. They now own most of the old company’s assets and are hiring. Firefly Space Systems had about 150 employees when they had to furlough everyone, but Firefly Aerospace now has 60 employees, including both former Space Systems personnel and new people, and hope to reach 100 employees by first launch. They expect to enter service by mid 2019.
(Are you looking for a job? They are located just north of Austin TX.)
They expect to be able to place 1,000 kg into a 200 km orbit, if launched from Cape Canaveral, for a price of $10 million. They are working on “version 2.0” of their Alpha rocket, but I do not know whether they are still planning to use an aerospike engine.