David Roza
The Air Force and Space Force are spending millions of dollars researching a concept called “rocket cargo,” where they would shoot a capsule full of troops or supplies into orbit and land it anywhere on Earth in 90 minutes or less, which is way faster than anything they have currently.
That kind of capability could be a game-changer in future conflicts, where U.S. troops may be more spread out and isolated than they’ve been in decades. But tough questions remain, such as how to make rocket cargo cheap, fast and safe enough to work at scale and in combat?
First, some context. From 1970 to 2000, the average launch cost to get a kilogram into space was about $18,500, according to a NASA research paper. In 2010, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 brought it down to $2,700 per kilogram, and it could fall even further as more companies enter the space launch business and as bigger, more reusable rockets make for better economies of scale.
Cheaper space launches mean things like rocket cargo may become more feasible. Since 2020, the Air Force and Space Force have awarded more than $100 million in research and test contracts to companies such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Anduril, Sierra Space, and Rocket Lab. The idea for rocket cargo is to adapt these companies’ rockets to urgent tactical or humanitarian missions.
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