Castelion Picks Site In New Mexico For Hypersonic Manufacturing - Defense Daily

Defense Startup Castelion Selects New Mexico for $100M Hypersonic Weapons Campus

Defense technology startup Castelion announced Monday it has selected Sandoval County, New Mexico, as the site for Project Ranger, a 1,000-acre solid rocket motor manufacturing campus that will produce the company's Blackbeard hypersonic missile. The facility represents a significant expansion in domestic hypersonic weapons capacity as the United States works to close what analysts describe as a widening capability gap with China and Russia.

The company plans to invest more than $100 million over the first four years with additional capital to follow, creating more than 300 high-paying jobs and generating over $650 million in economic output over the next decade. The site, located in unincorporated Sandoval County about three miles west of Rio Rancho city limits, expects to break ground in early 2026, with early production trials beginning in late 2026 and missile deliveries starting in 2027.

SpaceX Veterans Target Cost Breakthrough

Founded in November 2022 by former SpaceX executives, Castelion secured $100 million in January 2025—$70 million in Series A funding led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and $30 million in venture debt from Silicon Valley Bank. The company is raising an additional $350 million Series B led by Lightspeed and Altimeter Capital that values the firm in the billions, anticipated to close within weeks.

The leadership team includes co-founder and COO Sean Pitt, former director of commercial sales at SpaceX; co-founder and CFO Andrew Kreitz, previously senior finance manager at SpaceX; plus advisors Mike Griffin and Lisa Porter, who held senior Pentagon positions during the first Trump administration. CEO Bryon Hargis led sales and business development for SpaceX's national security satellite programs, building a multi-billion-dollar sales pipeline in under five years.

The company applies commercial space industry principles to missile manufacturing, conducting frequent prototype launches and handling all production in-house from avionics to rocket motors. Blackbeard went from blank sheet design to more than 20 developmental test flights in less than 18 months.

Army Integration and Budget Support

Castelion announced in October 2025 that it has been awarded integration contracts for its Blackbeard weapon system with operational U.S. Army and Navy platforms, with plans to conduct live-fire tests advancing the Department of War's efforts to evaluate cost-effective strike capabilities.

Army fiscal 2026 budget documents reveal plans to develop a Precision Strike Missile variant dubbed HX3 that could double the range of the baseline weapon at a cheaper price point. The Army budget states that Blackbeard Ground Launch is designed to deliver approximately 80 percent of the PrSM Increment 4 capability at significantly reduced cost, though it won't match the range or velocity of the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon.

The Army has requested $25 million under Project HX3 to support development and testing, with plans to deliver a prototype proof-of-concept for demonstration in early 2026, followed by 10 prototype missiles in 2027 for additional testing using the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System.

Closing the Hypersonic Gap

The facility addresses urgent national security concerns about America's hypersonic capabilities. An Atlantic Council study warns that American sluggishness in developing and deploying hypersonic weapons, coupled with Russian and Chinese determination to field their own arsenals, is fostering a "battlefield asymmetry" that threatens Western potency.

Jeffrey McCormick, an intelligence analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency, stated that Beijing has "the world's leading hypersonic arsenal". China possesses systems like the DF-17 and YJ-21 sea-based hypersonic missile capable of targeting U.S. bases in the Pacific. Russia has deployed its Kinzhal hypersonic missiles in Ukraine, marking perhaps the first time such weapons have been used in war.

Despite a budget increase to $6.9 billion for hypersonic research in fiscal 2025, no U.S. hypersonic weapon system has reached full operational status and prototypes continue to undergo evaluation. The Army plans to field the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon next year, which would make it the first hypersonic system fielded by the U.S. military.

New Mexico's Defense Heritage

"After a highly competitive nationwide search, we chose New Mexico for its technical talent, regional infrastructure, and history of scientific achievement," said Kreitz. The state's proximity to White Sands Missile Range, Holloman Air Force Base, and national laboratories including Sandia and Los Alamos provided critical advantages.

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham stated: "New Mexico has always been front and center in shaping the frontiers of American defense and innovation. This project helps carry that legacy forward". Senator Martin Heinrich emphasized that the facility "will strengthen our national security, grow our state's economy, and create over 300 permanent jobs that New Mexicans can build their families around".

Sandia National Labs conducted preliminary hazard analysis using Defense Explosive Safety Regulation standards to model worst-case explosive scenarios, finding that the amount of explosives currently proposed would create danger to buildings within approximately a half-mile radius. The facility site's large size accommodates necessary safety buffers, though records show 5,933 buildings and structures within a five-mile radius, including residential subdivisions, two fire stations, two elementary schools, and nine parks.

Manufacturing Capabilities and Timeline

Project Ranger will produce solid rocket motors, conduct static tests, and assemble components to produce finished rounds. The campus will manufacture Blackbeard missiles designed for mass production across multiple military platforms. The system leverages vertically integrated propulsion and guidance subsystems to achieve performance at a fraction of the cost of legacy weapons, supporting the Department's objective of building credible non-nuclear deterrent capacity at scale.

Sandoval County has approved incentive packages including $5 million from the state, up to $1 million from the City of Rio Rancho, and up to $4 million from Sandoval County. The county is actively working on the Paseo del Volcan extension, securing $5 million in Department of Transportation funding to support the facility's logistics.

Local officials collaborated through a months-long process involving Sandoval County, the City of Rio Rancho, Sandoval Economic Alliance, the Albuquerque Regional Economic Alliance, and state and federal officials. Kreitz indicated during a governing body meeting that the company is eyeing fourth quarter 2026 for the start of production.

The facility positions Castelion to participate in what defense analysts expect will be an expanding market for hypersonic weapons, with potential to support both the company's own products and possibly serve as a supplier to other defense contractors. Success will depend on securing production contracts, executing the technical challenges of hypersonic manufacturing, and competing effectively against established contractors like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman.

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Sources and Citations

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Castelion Picks Site In New Mexico For Hypersonic Manufacturing - Defense Daily