Editing Aerospike engine (section)

=== Firefly Aerospace ===
In July 2014 [[Firefly Aerospace|Firefly Space Systems]] announced its planned Alpha launcher that uses an aerospike engine for its first stage. Intended for the small satellite launch market, it is designed to launch satellites into low-Earth orbit (LEO) at a price of US$8–9&nbsp;million, much lower than with conventional launchers.<ref name=giz1407>{{cite web|url=http://www.gizmag.com/firefly-alpha-aerospike-launch-vehicle/32892 |title=Firefly Space Systems unveils Alpha launch vehicle design with aerospike engine |publisher=Gizmag.com |date= 14 July 2014|access-date=2014-07-14}}</ref>

[[Firefly Alpha]] 1.0 was designed to carry payloads of up to {{convert|400|kg}}. It uses carbon composite materials and uses the same basic design for both stages. The plug-cluster aerospike engine puts out {{convert|90000|lbf|kN}} of thrust. The engine has a bell-shaped nozzle that has been cut in half, then stretched to form a ring with the half-nozzle now forming the profile of a plug.<ref name=giz1407/>

This rocket design was never launched. The design was abandoned after Firefly Space Systems went bankrupt. A new company, [[Firefly Aerospace]], has replaced the aerospike engine with a conventional engine in the Alpha 2.0 design. However, the company has proposed Firefly Gamma, a partially reusable spaceplane with aerospike engines.