Spaceport America expands its reach

Spaceport America may be best known for human spaceflight, but much of the work taking place at the southern New Mexico facility happens outside the public spotlight. 

Flight testing, rocket engine testing and other operations take place at the state-owned facility in Sierra County, while its reach extends into Las Cruces through economic activity and partnerships with New Mexico State University. Charles Hurley, public information officer for Spaceport America, said that broader role starts with the facility’s place within the New Mexico Economic Development Department. 

“First and foremost, the site’s an economic development organization or project for the state of New Mexico,” Hurley said. “The job of our team members is to bring in various companies from both domestic and international to conduct various space and aerospace-related testing operations here.” 

That work is supported in part through an agreement with White Sands Missile Range that provides access to restricted airspace for customer operations. On the ground, Hurley said activity can include engine testing, along with commercial film, television, and photography projects. 

The economic footprint reaches into Doña Ana County. A 2025 study prepared by NMSU’s Center for Border Economic Development and Arrowhead Center estimated Spaceport America activity supported 590 total jobs and generated about $183.4 million in economic output in the county during 2024. Statewide, the study estimated 790 total jobs and nearly $239.8 million in output. 

Its connection to NMSU has also put students to work on projects with direct applications at the facility. Hurley said civil and mechanical engineering students have participated in capstone projects that included upgrades to a launch rail and the use of 3D-printed parts. Students worked with Spaceport personnel as those improvements were developed. 

“It provides that hands-on experience that a college senior is looking for as they transition into the workforce following graduation,” Hurley said. 

Spaceport America has hosted similar capstone work with students from New Mexico Tech. Its educational reach goes further: the economic impact study found more than 8,500 K-12 and university students participated in Spaceport America STEM-related activities in 2024, including classroom programs, virtual presentations and site visits. 

Spaceport America is developing the $16 million Spaceport Technology and Reception Center, or STARC, a multi-use building planned for office and conference rooms, media presentation space, food preparation and dining areas, IT infrastructure, a virtual experience center and elevated viewing areas. 

Hurley described STARC as a “Swiss Army knife” for the facility, with space that could serve visitors while also supporting tenants with functions such as meetings and payload processing. He said the building is expected to come online in summer 2027. 

A separate hangar project is under construction, and Hurley said Spaceport America has already held discussions with companies interested in multi-year leases. The existing space is tight. 

“Right now, all of our buildings are full,” Hurley said. “Builds like this will help our ability to bring in other customers and tenants and are crucial to our growth and future plans.” 

Virgin Galactic remains Spaceport America’s most recognizable tenant, but Hurley said the facility supports a wider range of customers and technologies, including high-altitude platform systems and other aerospace testing. One example is Precision AI, a Canadian agricultural technology company developing an AI-assisted system designed to target weeds while spraying crops. 

Virgin Galactic, meanwhile, is targeting February 2027 to resume commercial spaceflight operations after delaying the debut of its next-generation Delta-class spacecraft. The company has attributed the delay to avionics and systems installation work taking longer than expected. 

The return would follow a pause that began after Virgin Galactic’s final commercial flight aboard VSS Unity in June 2024. The company is developing two Delta spacecraft intended to support a higher flight cadence from Spaceport America. 

Looking further ahead, Spaceport officials have also discussed adding a capability the facility does not currently have. Francisco Pallares, director of business development for the New Mexico Spaceport Authority, said during an earlier interview that officials were working toward obtaining a Federal Aviation Administration re-entry license. 

Spaceport America currently supports suborbital launches, but Pallares said such a license could eventually allow guided vehicles or capsules returning from orbit to re-enter in New Mexico. He described the effort as a longer-term goal with a horizon of roughly five years, saying it could keep more of the processing and other economic activity associated with returning spacecraft in the state. 

As Spaceport America adds infrastructure and looks toward its next phase, Hurley said its future won’t be defined by a single kind of aerospace operation. 

“I think that’s the biggest thing that I would want somebody to take away, is that it’s not a single-use site,” Hurley said. “It’s a multi-use site that can provide a lot of different functions for private industry and can build those bridges between private industry, government, at the federal and statewide as well.”