Firefly Aerospace ($FLY) posted its first-ever $100M+ quarter on Tuesday, backed by a fresh slate of launch and defense announcements.
It was a record quarter for the company, which reported $117.7M in revenue, up 45.5% from the prior quarter.
- Firefly expects full-year 2026 revenue to land between $420M and $450M.
- On the Q2 earnings call, Firefly CFO Darren Ma said 95% of second-half revenue is already booked.
- Management also pointed to a record $1.5B backlog as a signal of contracted work still to come in the next few years.
Leading the launch news is a two-year contract extension of its multi-launch agreement with Lockheed Martin ($LMT), covering up to 25 launches of Lockheed spacecraft through 2031.
As part of the collaboration, Firefly and Lockheed will also explore sea-based launch solutions for national security missions with Seagate Space, leveraging its Gateway offshore platform.
Alpha energy: The extension is anchored around Firefly’s upgraded Alpha Block II configuration. Block II will fully debut in Firefly’s Alpha Flight 8, which was pushed to Q4. The company did not confirm whether it is still on track for 12 Alpha flights in 2027.
Firefly is expanding Alpha’s deployable launch capabilities to go after more responsive space missions. The Block II upgrades include:
- 7-foot length increase
- Consolidated in-house batteries and avionics
- Stronger carbon composite structures built with automated systems
- Optimized propellant tanks.
But the most striking upgrade? Alpha now comes in white (for thermal protection).
On the radar: SciTec—which was acquired by Firefly in late 2025—also announced a $93.7M firm-fixed price OTA from Space Systems Command to help modernize the military’s ground-based missile warning radar network.
SciTec was one of three winners who will compete and collaborate on a common upgrade architecture and design under the Ground Based Radar Digitization program:
- Raytheon holds the largest share of the contract at $309.5M.
- Defense tech company Wildstar received $20.2M.
Growing pains: The headline number from the earnings report was the 659% YoY revenue increase—though that figure comes from Firefly’s $15.5M base a year ago.
That growth doesn’t come cheap. Firefly is spending hard across its launch, lunar, and defense programs during Q2:
- Net loss widened to $92.3M, up from $63.8M a year ago;
- Free cash flow was an outflow of $106.3M, up from $78.9M the prior quarter;
- Firefly raised $181.6M in a stock offering to refill the tank.
Firefly ended the quarter with $940.3M in total liquidity, including $635.3M in cash and short-term investments.
Firefly stock was up ~4% in pre-market hours Wednesday.
Rocket Lab Unveils GHOST on a Record Quarter
Rocket Lab ($RKLB) unveiled a deployable launch system—dubbed GHOST—designed to enable responsive launch from anywhere in the world.
SpaceX Reports Q2 Earnings
After SpaceX’s record-breaking June IPO, the company released its first quarterly results on Tuesday, and the headline figures beat expectations.
AFRL Adds $11.7M to Blue Origin’s Point-to-Point Cargo Contract
Blue Origin landed a $11.7M increase to its AFRL contract to study how its launcher can be used to complete point-to-point delivery missions.
Payload Field Guide: European Launchers
Europe is firing on all fronts to stand up new launch capabilities, but the continent isn’t moving as fast as it might hope.
HUNTSVILLE, AL—The US is likely to start the fiscal year under a continuing resolution—and that’s a problem for Golden Dome, according to Gen. Michael Guetlein, the program’s director.
Funding woes: Congress provided $24B for Golden Dome in fiscal 2026 as part of a reconciliation bill in 2025. In fiscal 2027, the administration has requested $17.5B for Golden Dome—which would also be appropriated under a reconciliation bill, instead of as part of the Pentagon’s topline budget.
The reconciliation process allows Congress to fast-track funding with just a simple majority approval. However, it also has a significant drawback:
Keep reading