Rocketdyne returns to the market
The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage for the second flight of NASA’s Space Launch System in July 2021, inclusive of a single RL-10 engine. NASA photo.
By
Ross Wilkers
AE Industrial Partners is now in place as majority owner of the company, whose portfolio includes a rocket engine and propulsion systems.
Rocketdyne is back in the market as a standalone company after AE Industrial Partners closed its acquisition of the L3Harris Technologies space propulsion, power and electronics business units.
AE Industrial now owns a 60% stake in the 1,300-employee Rocketdyne entity with L3Harris holding the other 40% and continuing to be a key partner. Rocketdyne said Tuesday that its portfolio as an independent business includes the RL-10 rocket engine, in-space propulsion thrusters, and systems for nuclear power and energy.
The RL-10 has been used on the Space Launch System and United Launch Alliance’s Atlas, Delta and Vulcan Centaur rockets.
Kristin Houston will lead Rocketdyne as chief executive following a two-year stint as president of space propulsion and power systems at L3Harris. She first joined L3Harris in 2021 as president of the electro-optical sector following 16 years at Boeing.
When the transaction was first announced in January, AE Industrial said it planned to revive the Rocketdyne name and focus much of its attention on speeding up new technology development. AE Industrial is the same private investment firm whose space market backings include Firefly Aerospace, Redwire and York Space Systems.
This new iteration of Rocketdyne does not include everything that was part of Aerojet Rocketdyne when L3Harris acquired the latter company in 2023. For example, L3Harris is keeping the RS-25 engine that NASA uses for the core stage of the Space Launch System.
L3Harris also held onto a bulk of the solid rocket motor portfolio for its Missile Solutions segment, which the company plans to take public next year.