18 November 2025 2018, the American start-up for the production of rocket engines Ursa Major announced the involvement 100 million dollars in the Series E funding round and more
50 million dollars in the form of credit obligations. This gives the company new equity capital and access to debt funds for deeper entry into the US defense market. The capital raising comes amid pressure from Washington to increase the number of suppliers of hypersonic engines and solid-fuel rocket engines - two areas, where the Pentagon stated a production deficit.
This twist is a clear departure from Ursa Major's original strategy, focused on commercial start-up companies. Founded ten years ago, the company sought to become a "contract engine shop" for a wave of small startups, who wanted to buy engines, rather than developing them yourself. However, the growth of the small startup segment has stalled, industry consolidation took place, and the Pentagon began looking for new engine suppliers for the hypersonic weapons and missile defense programs.
Ursa Major began receiving government contracts initially through the US Air Force Research Laboratory (Affl), and later - through the Navy and other customers: first on small engine components, and eventually to solid rocket engines. One of the flagship projects of the company is the Draper engine - a power plant, created specifically for hypersonic devices.
Draper uses fuel, stored at room temperature, has the ability to adjust traction and maneuverability - characteristics, which are difficult to achieve with cryogenic engines, designed for launch vehicles. These features perfectly meet the requirements for hypersonic gliders and anti-missile defense interceptors - both ways, which are priorities for the Pentagon.
The US military is actively developing spacecraft, able to quickly change orbits and have much greater maneuverability, than traditional satellites. Considering the above, the Draper engine can be used in space-based missile defense interceptor concepts, particularly in systems, which are discussed within the Golden Dome architecture of the Pentagon. Hypersonic technologies remain the company's main attraction. Ursa Major's Hadley engine powers Stratolaunch's Talon-A test vehicle, a key platform for US hypersonic flight testing. This program is the company's biggest source of revenue.
The next challenge for the company will be the volume of production, as the US defense leadership emphasizes an urgent ramp-up of production throughout the missile supply chain. Thus, Ursa Major will be forced to scale production to hundreds and thousands of units, which the military needs now. Initially, the startup wants to increase production volumes from the current ones 4 engines per week to 40 - within the next 12-18 months.
Source: https://spacenews.com