Italian rocket builder Avio has signed a new contract with the US Armed Forces for the production of solid rocket motors used to power tactical missiles.
In 2022, Avio set up a US-based subsidiary in Delaware. In its 2023 year-end financial report, the company explained that it had launched the subsidiary after identifying a major shortfall in tactical propulsion production capacity in the US amid rapidly increasing demand.
In July 2024, Avio announced that it had partnered with the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center (AvMC), a branch of the US Army, to develop solid rocket motors for surface-to-air applications. At the time, the company stated that the partnership would work toward a capability that would allow “rapid transition to production.”
“The project leverages both Parties’ expertise to qualify the propulsion system in a design-to-manufacturing approach, offering [the] possibility for a future rapid transition to production,” explained Avio in a 23 July 2024 press release.
On 28 August, the company announced that it had signed a supplemental agreement with “a U.S. Government Armed Force.” Under the multi-year deal, Avio will provide “industrial capacity for manufacturing, assembly, integration, and testing of tactical missile solid rocket motors,” the company explained.
“This is a long-term industrial commitment with optionality for further growth in volume and time,” said Giulio Ranzo, Chief Executive of Avio, speaking to European Spaceflight. “We are proud to have received the trust of an American Armed Force and will put to work all of our capabilities. Quantitative details cannot be shared, but it is a material step forward for Avio.”
While the 28 August press release was thin on details, the new agreement appears to be a follow-on contract for the AvMC partnership, possibly moving to execute that “rapid transition to production.”
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