Cape Canaveral, Fla. – September 14, 2026 -- Starfighters Space, Inc. (NYSE American: FJET) has entered a memorandum of understanding with Vaya Defense & Space, Inc. to jointly evaluate captive-carry flight testing and air-launch propulsion, targeting a gap in hypersonic development where demand for test flights has outrun available capacity. The global hypersonic technology market is valued at approximately US$8.49 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach roughly US$15.73 billion by 2030, according to Research and Markets, a compound annual growth rate of about 13.2%.
Two companies on Florida's Space Coast plan joint propulsion and flight-test evaluation
Under the MOU, Starfighters and Vaya will pursue two tracks: flying Vaya's hypersonic test articles on Starfighters' Wind Tunnel in the Sky service, which uses F-104 aircraft to expose hardware to sustained Mach 2+ conditions, and assessing whether Vaya's Vortex-Hybrid engine is suitable for STARLAUNCH, Starfighters' planned air-launch system for suborbital missions. The two firms operate facilities only miles apart, and Starfighters is to gain access to Vaya's propulsion lab and precision machining shop for prototyping and engine testing. The agreement is exploratory and carries no attached revenue.
Vaya's hybrid engine offers throttling and restart absent in solid rocket motors
Vaya's Vortex-Hybrid engine combines a 3D-printed, non-explosive thermoplastic fuel grain with a liquid oxidizer, which the company says enables full-authority throttling and in-flight restart. Conventional solid rocket motors, once ignited, burn until propellant is exhausted and are classed as explosive for handling, a profile the companies say is poorly suited to hardware carried under the wing of a crewed aircraft. "Their shop is also a short drive from our hangar at Kennedy Space Center,