The Affordable Rapid Missile Demonstrator, or ARMD, powered by Ursa Major’s Draper liquid rocket engine, achieved supersonic speeds and validated concepts of operations during a recent flight test, the Air Force Research Laboratory said Thursday.
According to Brig. Gen. Jason Bartolomei, commander of the ARFL and a technology executive officer for the Air Force, the effort strengthens deterrence and the nation’s capability to fight in future conflicts.
“We are not just building a single missile; we are forging a new path toward a cost-effective, mass-producible deterrent for the nation,” he stated.
Air Force leaders will talk about initiatives that strengthen the nation’s warfighting capabilities and other priorities at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Air and Space Summit on July 30. Get your tickets today.
Chris Spagnoletti, CEO of Ursa Major, noted that the flight demonstrates that a vehicle powered by a safe, storable and throttleable liquid rocket engine can be developed and deployed quickly and at lower cost.
“We went from contract to flight-ready of an all up round and propulsion system in just eight months,” he shared.
Ursa Major is in contract for the continued maturation of the Draper liquid rocket engine. In December, the company said it conducted a static fire test of the ARMD.
What Is the Draper Engine?
Draper is a 4,000-pound-thrust storable liquid rocket engine developed to support hypersonic defense, in-space propulsion and rapid launch missions. It is a tactical and storable variant of the company’s Hadley system, which has reached Mach 5 speeds aboard Stratolaunch’s Talon-A vehicle in previous tests.
In an interview with Breaking Defense in December, Dan Jablonsky, former CEO of Ursa Space, explained that Draper is storable and can remain in a system for extended periods, potentially for more than a decade, while still maintaining readiness for launch. The executive added that the engine can be deployed at very high altitudes and in space.
What Is Ursa Space?
Ursa Major is an aerospace and defense company that develops technologies designed to operate across land, sea, air and space missions. It develops and manufactures propulsion systems for hypersonic platforms, solid rocket motors and space mobility applications.
Ursa Major conducts engineering, testing and core operations at its headquarters in Berthoud, Colorado, while its additive manufacturing operations are based in Youngstown, Ohio.
