FireFly Aerospace receives FAA clearance to resume Alpha launches

In a regulatory 8-K filing, the company stated: “Firefly Aerospace (FLY) has received Federal Aviation Administration clearance to resume Alpha rocket launches following the Flight 6 mishap on April 29, 2025. The company conducted a thorough investigation with the FAA and in parallel assembled an Independent Review Board of multiple government agencies, customers, and industry experts. The findings confirmed Firefly’s flight safety system performed nominally through all phases of flight. Both Alpha stages landed safely in the Pacific Ocean, and the launch posed no risk to public safety. Alpha Flight 6 lifted off and ascended nominally through stage separation. Alpha’s first stage then experienced a rupture milliseconds after stage separation. The pressure wave hit Alpha’s second stage, leading to the loss of the engine’s nozzle extension and substantially reducing stage two thrust. The second stage was able to recover attitude control and continued to ascend to an altitude of 320 km until running out of propellant. The vehicle was three seconds short of achieving orbital velocity and five seconds short of the target payload deployment orbit.”