Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB), a global leader in launch services and space systems, today announced it has been selected by defense technology company Anduril Industries for multiple hypersonic test flights with its HASTE launch vehicle. The partnership brings together two defense industry leaders to advance one of the Department of War’s most critical technology areas: scaled hypersonics that deliver Mach 5 and beyond capabilities for future defense missions. The multi-launch contract includes three HASTE hypersonic test launches that will take place from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 in Virginia. Each mission will serve as a testbed to accelerate the development of hypersonic technologies, fully funded through Anduril’s own internal capital. This approach underscores Anduril’s longstanding commitment to rapidly testing and maturing the capabilities that will define the future of American defense. In a showcase of Rocket Lab’s responsive space capabilities, the first of these three missions is set to launch in less than 12 months: demonstrating contract to launch in a matter of months, not years.
“Anduril is proud to partner with Rocket Lab to advance one of the most complex problems in defense,” said Anduril’s SVP of Engineering Gokul Subramanian. “This collaboration exemplifies Anduril’s approach to solving the hardest problems in the space domain, working together with the best of the space industrial base to rapidly deliver scalable, cost-effective solutions.”
Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Sir Peter Beck, says: “HASTE represents speed, affordability, and reliable hypersonic technology testing, and that’s a powerful combination for the United States’ government and industry partners like Anduril. Together, Rocket Lab and Anduril are bridging the gap between hypersonic research and operational deployment as fast as possible to ensure U.S. armed forces maintain a decisive technological advantage.”
Rocket Lab is a national leader in hypersonic testing. Building on a 100% mission success rate since HASTE launches began in 2023, these new missions with Anduril leverage Rocket Lab’s proven commercial model for frequent and reliable hypersonic flight tests. This latest HASTE block buy follows another significant milestone for Rocket Lab: the purchase of 20 HASTE launches over a four-year period by the Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) for its MACH-TB 2.0 program, a Department of War effort to rapidly accelerate hypersonic flight tests that advance aerospace technologies shaping the future of defense. Together, these new and existing HASTE contracts represent almost a third of Rocket Lab’s 70+ launches in backlog.
