Firefly Aerospace secured a $13 million subcontract from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to manufacture, test and deliver the composite aeroshell for the SkyFall Mars mission, slated for launch in late 2028. The work will be performed at Firefly’s new Gloworks innovation lab and Briggs, Texas Rocket Ranch facilities.
Firefly Aerospace has been awarded a $13 million subcontract by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to build the aeroshell assembly for the SkyFall Mars mission, covering manufacturing, structural qualification and flight acceptance testing prior to delivery.
The aeroshell, comprising both backshell and heatshield, will be developed at Firefly’s Gloworks innovation lab and produced at its Rocket Ranch facility in Briggs, Texas, leveraging advanced carbon composite technologies from its Blue Ghost, Elytra, Alpha and Eclipse programs.
Scheduled for launch in late 2028, the SkyFall mission will deploy three Mars helicopters using an innovative mid-air release technique to conduct airborne subsurface mapping and resource prospecting, paving the way for future crewed exploration.
This subcontract marks Firefly’s first award under its Gloworks lab initiative and underscores its expanding role in planetary exploration, complementing its existing lunar lander and orbital delivery contracts.
