Six-for-six successful live-fire test collects ballistic flight data to reduce risk and accelerate  execution of Army Hydra-70 prototype program. 

Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz. — August 28, 2026 — Firehawk today announced the  successful live-fire test of six Hydra-70 rockets built in their Crawford, MS facility, achieving a 100% success rate. The ballistic test demonstrates the performance of Firehawk manufactured rockets under representative operational conditions. 

The test follows the U.S. Army’s recent award of an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreement to Firehawk as part of an effort to diversify the Hydra-70 rocket supply chain, increase industrial base surge capacity, and modernization of the government-owned Hydra-70 Technical Data Package (TDP). 

All six rockets successfully fired from an M261 rocket launcher, a launcher used operationally with the Hydra-70 system on platforms like the AH-64 Apache, UH-60 Black Hawk and AH-1Z Viper. The test was structured to simulate real-world launch conditions while collecting ballistic flight-test data that would be required during program First Article Inspection and Lot Acceptance Testing (FAI/LAT). 

By collecting that data ahead of required program milestones, Firehawk is reducing technical and schedule risk associated with execution of the Army OTA and any potential follow-on production contracts, building a data foundation for qualification. 

“Going six-for-six is an important validation of both the product and the manufacturing approach behind it,” said Will Edwards, co-founder and CEO of Firehawk. “More importantly, we’re not waiting for contractual milestones to begin retiring risk. We are investing ahead of the program, generating the data the Army will need and demonstrating that Firehawk is ready to move quickly toward production.” 

The Army’s Aviation Rocket and Small Guided Munitions (ARSGM) Product Office recently used the One Nation Innovation (ONI) marketplace to award agreements to Firehawk and three other defense contractors as part of an effort to establish additional viable sources for the Hydra-70. Under the agreements, each vendor will deliver 24 prototype Hydra-70 rockets and a modernized TDP within 18 months.

The Army said the acquisition strategy is intended to establish multiple viable production sources, drive competitive pricing on annual orders, improve manufacturability and provide additional industrial base surge capacity to meet emergent mission requirements. 

 

Firehawk’s successful live-fire test represents an early step toward those objectives and demonstrates the company’s ability to manufacture and fire Hydra-70 rocket motors. 

“America and its allies need additional production capacity. And they need modern manufacturing approaches that can bring that capacity online faster,” Edwards said. “This  test demonstrates that we can build, test and iterate quickly while meeting the performance requirements of a fielded system. That is how we start building America’s arsenal faster.” 

 

About Firehawk 

Firehawk is an end-to-end energetics company, revolutionizing the supply chain to fuel the future of defense to deter and win tomorrow’s wars. We build rocket motors powered by our proprietary propellant manufacturing process, which is faster and more cost effective,  with the ability to manufacture and distribute almost anywhere in the world. Firehawk designs its products at its Dallas headquarters, is building a 340-acre production facility in Lawton, Oklahoma, has a DCMA-rated integration facility in Crawford, Mississippi and performs static fire and flight tests at two facilities in West Texas, including a 30-square mile launch range. For more information, visit www.firehawkaerospace.com