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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Aerojet Rocketdyne Expands Rocket Engine Assembly Plant In Stennis, Mississippi

07/12/2016
Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc., is expanding its Center of Excellence for Large Liquid Rocket Engine Assembly at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Stennis, Mississippi.

The company said assembly and testing of its AR1 advanced liquid rocket engine will take place at Stennis Space Center. The AR1 is being developed to support the country’s mandate to eliminate U.S. reliance on the Russian RD-180 engine for national security space launches by 2019.

Aerojet Rocketdyne’s facility at Stennis Space Center is already home for assembly and testing of the RS-68 engine that powers the Delta IV family of launch vehicles, and the RS-25 engine that will power NASA’s Space Launch System – America’s newest heavy lift launch vehicle in development, set to be the most powerful rocket in the world. As part of the buildup for RS-25 assembly and testing, Aerojet Rocketdyne is locating its RS-25 low pressure turbopump assembly to the company’s facility at Stennis Space Center, according to the Mississippi Development Authority.
We have had a long history of partnering with Stennis to power the nation into space. Assembly and testing of the AR1 at NASA Stennis adds to that legacy. Eileen Drake, President/CEO, Aerojet Rocketdyne
“I am very pleased to announce our plans for expansion of Aerojet Rocketdyne’s presence in Mississippi,” said Aerojet Rocketdyne President/CEO Eileen Drake. “We have had a long history of partnering with Stennis to power the nation into space. Assembly and testing of the AR1 at NASA Stennis adds to that legacy.”

“This plan will establish Aerojet Rocketdyne’s facility at NASA Stennis as the company’s Center of Excellence for Large Liquid Rocket Engine Assembly and Test and solidify NASA’s Stennis Space Center as the nation’s premier rocket engine test facility. I look forward to continuing to work on this expansion with Chairman Cochran, Senator Wicker, Congressman Palazzo, and the rest of Mississippi’s Congressional delegation, as well as with Governor Bryant and his team,” she added.

Currently Aerojet Rocketdyne, located at Stennis, employs 130 people at its state-of-the-art facility. That number is expected to grow to more than 200 as development and production of the AR1 engine continues, and as the RS-25 engine continues testing and restarts production.

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