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Two launch companies on contrasting paths: Relativity moved from its 3D-printed Terran 1 to the much larger, partly reusable Terran R, while Firefly flies its Alpha rocket, lands on the Moon with Blue Ghost and is building Eclipse.
| Metric | Relativity Space | Firefly Aerospace |
|---|---|---|
| Founded[1,5] | 2015 (Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone) | 2017 as Firefly Aerospace; predecessor Firefly Space Systems began in 2014 and was liquidated in March 2017 |
| Headquarters[1,3] | Long Beach, CA | Cedar Park, TX |
| Leadership / Control[1,3,5] | CEO Eric Schmidt, who took a controlling interest in March 2025 | CEO Jason Kim; AE Industrial Partners owned about 36.9% (Dec 31, 2025) |
| Publicly Traded[1,3] | No (private) | Yes (Nasdaq: FLY, since Aug 8, 2025) |
| Primary Vehicle[1,2,4] | Terran R (medium to heavy lift, in development; first launch planned for late 2026) | Alpha (small lift, operational) |
| Previous / Retired Vehicle[1,4] | Terran 1 (retired after its only flight, March 23, 2023) | None (Alpha is the first Firefly rocket) |
| LEO Payload Capacity[1,2,4] | Terran R: 23,500 kg with the booster reused (33,500 kg expended); Terran 1 was 1,250 kg | Alpha: 1,030 kg to LEO (630 kg to SSO) |
| First Orbital Success[1,3] | None: Terran 1 passed max-q but an upper-stage engine anomaly kept it from orbit | Yes: Alpha Flight 2 (Oct 2022) |
| Launch Record (as of Oct 2026)[1,4] | 1 launch (Terran 1, failed to reach orbit) | Alpha: 7 launches, 4 successful (Sep 2021 to Mar 2026) |
| Manufacturing[1,3] | Terran 1 largely 3D-printed (Aeon 1 engines); Terran R uses 3D printing for some parts but outside suppliers for others | Carbon composite structures; tap-off cycle Reaver and Lightning engines |
| Reusability Plan[1,3] | Terran R reusable first stage | Alpha expendable; Eclipse (with Northrop Grumman) designed with a reusable first stage |
| Private funding on record | $1.3B raised privately | $636M raised privately before listing |
| Key Investors / Backers[1,3] | Eric Schmidt (controlling); earlier investors incl. BOND, Tiger Global, Fidelity, K5 Global | AE Industrial Partners; Northrop Grumman ($50M equity investment) |
| Launch Site[1,3] | Cape Canaveral LC-16 | Vandenberg SFB; pads under construction at Wallops Island, VA and Esrange, Sweden |
| Customers / Backlog[1,2,3] | More than $3B in Terran R launch service agreements (Relativity, checked Oct 2026); customers incl. SES | NASA (VADR launch, Blue Ghost lunar landings), U.S. Space Force (VICTUS NOX), L3Harris (up to 20 Alpha launches) |
Figures as of Sep 4, 2026 (auto-updated daily from company profiles). Information only, not investment advice. Full disclaimer
Relativity Space built Terran 1, a largely 3D-printed rocket, which flew once on March 23, 2023: it passed max-q, but an upper-stage engine anomaly kept it from orbit, and Relativity retired it to concentrate on Terran R, a partly reusable rocket designed for 23,500 kg to low Earth orbit with the booster reused. In March 2025 former Google CEO Eric Schmidt took a controlling interest and became CEO. Relativity says it has secured more than $3 billion in Terran R launch service agreements (its Terran R page, checked October 2026) and plans a first launch in late 2026.[1,2]
Firefly Aerospace reached orbit on Alpha's second flight in October 2022. Alpha serves the 1,000 kg class; it has flown seven times with four successes, most recently returning to flight on March 12, 2026. Firefly's Blue Ghost lander, carrying NASA payloads, landed on the Moon on March 2, 2025. Its ownership has changed: in February 2022, after a U.S. government review, Noosphere Ventures sold its stake to AE Industrial Partners, which still controls the company, and Firefly listed on Nasdaq in August 2025.[3,4,5]
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