US defence company Singularity has conducted a static-fire test of a solid rocket motor (SRM) developed through a research agreement with the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD).
The company said the motor’s design will support interceptor systems that it plans to reveal at a later date.
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Singularity and NAWCWD are working to move the motor into high-volume production, it added.
The work was carried out under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), which allows government laboratories and industry to collaborate on research and development.
The partners reduced the period from initial design to static fire from about a year to approximately three months.
The static fire, which validates the motor’s performance and safety parameters, allows developers to assess its operation without conducting a flight test.
Singularity co-founder and CEO Jack Oswald said: “Our cooperative agreement with NAWCWD embodies bold action by the Department of War (DoW) to enable more aggressive deployment timelines for new air defence systems by prioritising speed to test, commercialisation of government innovation, and partnership with new entrants.”
NAWCWD said the agreement combines the warfare centre’s technical expertise with Singularity’s manufacturing approach to address demand for air-defence capacity.
The jointly developed rocket motor will underpin future interceptor systems, details of which Singularity has yet to disclose publicly.
NAWCWD’s involvement brings decades of propulsion and energetics expertise from its China Lake site, a longstanding hub for US weapons research.
The agreement is specifically focused on the challenge of countering drones and bolstering tactical air defence, areas identified as critical due to an ongoing interceptor shortfall.
NAWCWD strategic partnerships director Tamara Schiller said: “This agreement creates a pathway to leverage commercial innovation and manufacturing speed alongside the command’s technical expertise to accelerate capability delivery to the warfighter.”
Singularity publicly launched on 14 July following an oversubscribed $80m Series A funding round, which set the company’s valuation at $400m.
The company said it is developing low-cost air-defence systems and plans to use an assembly-line model based on automotive manufacturing principles to increase output.
