Rocketdyne name will return in private equity partnership

Private investment firm AE Industrial Partners LP has acquired a controlling interest in the Space Propulsion and Power Systems business of L3Harris Technologies, notable for the upper-stage rocket engines used in national security, civil, and commercial missions for more than 60 years. First developed by Pratt & Whitney, matured by legacy company Aerojet Rocketdyne, then L3Harris, RL-10 variants have been the workhorse of Delta IV and Atlas V rockets and will help power NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) in Artemis missions carrying astronauts into deep space.

L3Harris will retain approximately 40% equity ownership and continue to act as a strategic partner to the business, using its strong customer relationships across government and commercial markets to support continuity, credibility, and growth of the independent business.

AE Industrial plans to restore and use the Rocketdyne name for the enterprise to recognize its heritage and innovation in space propulsion technology.

“Rocketdyne is more than just a company, it’s the birthplace of U.S. rocket propulsion,” says AE Industrial Managing Partner Kirk Konert. “By taking the historic engine – the RL10 – and applying modern manufacturing discipline, we will honor its design while revolutionizing the production line.”

This includes 3D printing, as Konert explains in comments to Aerospace Manufacturing and Design. “The RL10 is an additive manufacturing success story, with more than 15 years of additive manufacturing experience delivering cost and producibility improvements while maintaining performance and reliability. We intend to build on this foundation by expanding additive manufacturing and other practical production improvements across the broader Rocketdyne portfolio, with a focus on throughput, scalability, and supply-chain resilience.”

Beyond the RL10, the acquisition “includes space propulsion, power, and avionics businesses that support launch vehicles and spacecraft across government and commercial programs,” Konert continues. “Rocketdyne also owns highly differentiated test and manufacturing infrastructure that we view as a critical national asset. This infrastructure helps accelerate innovation, enabling Rocketdyne to address emerging mission needs across the defense, civil, and commercial space ecosystems.”

The AE Industrial and L3Harris partnership also aims to develop nuclear propulsion technologies critical to the exploration of the moon and Mars.

“Rocketdyne’s nuclear propulsion systems are currently in development. These systems build on the company’s extensive heritage in nuclear power and in-space propulsion, giving Rocketdyne a higher degree of technical maturity than is typical for early-stage R&D programs,” Konert says. “We look forward to supporting the team in further accelerating this next generation technology.”

AE Industrial’s space portfolio has several natural points of alignment with Rocketdyne. Previous and current space investments include American Pacific Corp., Calca Solutions, Firefly Aerospace, Redwire Space, and York Space Systems.

“Firefly brings in-house propulsion and proven lunar mission execution, Redwire provides space and UAV power capabilities, and York operates at the forefront of proliferated space communications architectures,” according to Konert. “We’re excited to bring another highly capable space company into the fold, strengthening the AE portfolio’s ability to address the evolving needs of space end users.”

– Eric