CRC’s proposed R-2 rocket

A new Canadian rocket startup called the Canada Rocket Company (CRC) has now leased 50 acres at London International Airport in Ontario where it plans to build a $30 million engine test facility.

CRC will lease 50 acres from the Greater London International Airport Authority for an engine test area and a 12,000-square-foot office and shop building used for engineering, assembly, and test preparation. Putting the shop next to the stands is meant to keep engine build-up, instrumentation, and test ops in one place rather than splitting that work across distant sites.

The test area is planned for up to three vertical and horizontal stands, with the ability to static-fire engines producing more than 1 MN of thrust. Vertical stands are typically used for flight-like firings. Horizontal stands are often used earlier in a campaign for access, instrumentation, and engine development work.

The company hopes to have this facility operational in 2028 in conjunction with its plans to build a reusable rocket dubbed R-2, which from the scant details provided appears a copy of SpaceX’s Falcon 9, but using methane instead of kerosene for fuel. The company’s website provides no information on a launch schedule, and notes it raised $22.5 million in the first eight months after it was incorporated. It also claims its team includes people formerly from “SpaceX, Blue Origin, Rocket Lab, ArianeGroup and more.”

I think this is now the second Canadian rocket startup attempting to get off the ground. Nordspace was the first. Neither however is very close to launch, though both will likely benefit from the present Canadian government’s desire to promote and fund a “sovereign” launch capability.