LAS CRUCES, N.M. (Wednesday, February 7, 2024) – For the fourth time since September of 2021, the planet’s third-oldest formal flying acrobatic team honed its skills at the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport.

Preparing for a robust 2024 show schedule, the United State Air Force Demonstration Squadron “Thunderbirds” recently concluded a lengthy period of winter training at Spaceport America. From January 8 until January 19, 2024, the squadron, comprised of 12 officers and over 130 enlisted personnel serving in almost 30 Air Force job specialties, put in the requisite prep work necessary to engage in its 2024 show schedule.

“We are extremely honored to host the Thunderbirds again at Spaceport America,” remarked New Mexico Spaceport Authority Executive Director Scott McLaughlin. “Besides being incredible to watch, the Thunderbirds are an example of precision, professionalism, and what teamwork can accomplish. The economic impact they have on Dona Ana and Sierra Counties is also an important part of our mission. We wish them luck and hope they will continue to make use of the unique benefits of our site in the future.”

Featuring six F-16 Fighting Falcons, the Air Force’s premier multi-role fighter aircraft, the USAF Thunderbirds are assigned to Air Combat Command. Each year, the Thunderbirds’ training session is a period of time designed to successfully integrate and synchronize the team while practicing the demonstration display.

The relationship between Spaceport America and the Thunderbirds extends back to 2022 when, for the first time, the squadron trained outside of its home base at Nellis Air Force Base. Thanks to the restricted airspace available at Spaceport America through our partner, the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range, the Thunderbirds were able to hone their demonstration skills, practice challenging flying conditions and encounter time constraints they will likely encounter through their 2024 performance schedule.

The Thunderbirds’ first stop during their 34-show run throughout 2024 is Las Vegas, Nev., where they’ll perform the flyover for Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 11. From there, the Thunderbirds make for Daytona, Fla., where they’ll perform their signature “Delta” formation flyover as the green flag descends for the 66th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 18.

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Spaceport America is the first purpose-built commercial spaceport in the world. The FAA-licensed launch complex, situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket-friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, vertical launch complexes, and about 340 days of sunshine and low humidity.

Some of the most respected companies in the commercial space industry are tenants at Spaceport America: Virgin Galactic, HAPSMobile/ AeroVironment, UP Aerospace, SpinLaunch, and Prismatic Ltd., a subsidiary of BAE Systems.

2023 marked the 70th year in which the Thunderbirds represented the U.S. Air Force. Through 2024, the Thunderbirds are slated to perform nearly 70 demonstrations across 35 locations around the United States.

Since 1953, this legendary team has served as America’s premier air demonstration squadron, entrusted with the vital mission to recruit, retain and inspire past, present and future Airmen. While the faces of the team and the aircraft have changed over the decades, what has not changed is its dedication to representing the greatest Air Force on the planet.

The Thunderbirds represent the pride, precision and professionalism of 695,000 total force American Airmen, 68,000 of whom are deployed around the globe protecting our nation. Despite its polished appearance and unique attire, the team you see today remains combat ready, many having served in harm’s way defending interests of the United States.

The Thunderbirds are about more than air shows; they demonstrate what the highest level of teamwork can accomplish and inspire millions to reach for their dreams and be the best version of themselves.
This year the team embarked on its third ever training trip prior to show season at Spaceport America in southern N.M. and Edwards Air Force Base in Edwards, Calif. The historic trip resulted in the team flying approximately 1,500 flying hours prior to their first air show. The 2024 Thunderbirds, as a squadron, are entering this year with an amount of preparation and preparedness that’s unmatched in the team’s history.

Media Contact for Spaceport America
Charlie Hurley | Public Information Officer
(575) 305-5257 | media@spaceportamerica.com

LAS CRUCES, NM (Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023) – The world’s largest intercollegiate rocketry competition can now also be called one of the best overall events in the Land of Enchantment.

During the New Mexico Hospitality Association’s annual Top HAT (Hospitality And Tourism) Awards ceremony Tuesday (Nov. 14) night at the Sheraton Uptown in Albuquerque, N.M., Spaceport America and the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association were awarded with a Top HAT Award for Outstanding Event. The award recognized the exemplary efforts of both organizations to host the Spaceport America Cup.

“The Spaceport America Cup is a one-of-a-kind event with a size and scale that puts the efforts of thousands of future members of the aerospace and engineering workforce on display for a national audience,” commented Spaceport America Executive Director Scott McLaughlin. “How better to show the country and world the spaceport and what New Mexico is doing to become a major player in commercial space. Winning the Top HAT award is an honor and a special ‘pat on the back’ to Spaceport America’s staff, and the many volunteers at the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association. We also wish to thank our many sponsors of the event.”

Doled out on an annual basis for over a decade, the Top HAT Awards celebrate outstanding teams, businesses, individuals, campaigns, experiences, and lodging properties that have demonstrated exceptional dedication to their company or organization’s brand promise over the past year. Almost two dozen Top HAT Awards were presented to organizations around New Mexico in categories such as Best Broadcast Campaign, Best Print Campaign, Best Social Media Campaign, Outstanding Event, Outstanding Attraction/Experience and more.

Held annually since 2017, and scheduled for Monday-Saturday, June 17-22, 2024, the Spaceport America Cup brings together collegiate rocketry groups from around the globe drawn by the opportunity to collaborate and compete at a world-class spaceport facility. The competition and event are held in partnership with the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association (ESRA), which started the event in Utah in 2007 as the International Rocket Engineering Competition. Student teams represent the best and brightest from more than 150 institutions located around the world. In 2023, almost 6,000 students participated worldwide and nearly 1,700 of them made the journey to southern New Mexico. They, and more than 100 volunteer judges, learned about New Mexico’s growing “Space Valley” and the region’s growing aerospace sector.

An economic driver for the cities of Las Cruces and Truth or Consequences, the Spaceport America Cup generates millions of dollars for southern New Mexico as a direct result of the collegiate rocketeers, sponsors and other individuals who make the trip to witness over 100 rocket flights over a four-day span.

The complete field of 157 participating teams for the 2024 Spaceport America Cup was announced Saturday, Nov. 11. Squads from 34 of the 50 United States and 21 different nations from all six populated continents were among the final list of participants.

Numerous additional sponsorship and vendor opportunities remain for the 2024 Spaceport America Cup. Businesses and organizations may learn more about these opportunities by visiting the sponsorships page of the Spaceport America Cup website.

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Spaceport America is the first purpose-built commercial spaceport in the world. The FAA-licensed launch complex, situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket-friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, vertical launch complexes, and about 340 days of sunshine and low humidity.

Some of the most respected companies in the commercial space industry are tenants at Spaceport America: Virgin Galactic, HAPSMobile/ AeroVironment, UP Aerospace, and SpinLaunch.

The Experimental Sounding Rocket Association (ESRA) is a non-profit organization founded in 2003 for the purpose of fostering and promoting engineering knowledge and experience in the field of rocketry (SoundingRocket.org). ESRA’s primary focus is providing safe and exciting opportunities for academic groups to compete in aerospace challenges. ESRA’s flagship event, the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) has attracted tens of thousands of students since 2006 and is now known as the Spaceport America Cup.

The Spaceport America Cup (SpaceportAmericaCup.com) is the world’s largest IREC – Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition – for student rocketry teams. With over 140 teams from colleges and universities in dozens of countries, the competition continues to grow every year. Students launch solid, liquid, and hybrid rockets to target altitudes of 10,000 and 30,000 feet. The 2023 Spaceport America Cup saw nearly 1,700 student rocketeers from around the planet travel to Las Cruces, N.M., to take part in the global competition.

The New Mexico Hospitality Association (NewMexicoHospitality.org) is a nonprofit (501c6) that is focused on serving its members and all segments of the hospitality industry. The association delivers decades of combined experience to lead public policy and workforce development strategy for a more prosperous economy. Tourism & hospitality is one of the state’s strongest private industries. In 2017, the hospitality and tourism industry contributed $662 million in state and local tax revenue. Tourism had its largest economic impact in state history in 2017, injecting $6.6 billion into New Mexico’s economy and supporting nearly 94,000 jobs. The association represents member interests at the state and national level, cultivates professional development, and targets opportunity to incubate and foster long-term job and wealth creation statewide. The association’s members are true investors and are playing a crucial role in growing tourism and New Mexico’s economy.

Media Contact for Spaceport America
Charlie Hurley, Public Information Officer
(575) 305-5257 | media@spaceportamerica.com

Media Contact for the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association (ESRA)
Dustin Koehler
dustin.koehler@esrarocket.org

Economic Impact of Spaceport America, 2022 (publish date August 25, 2023)

LAS CRUCES, NM (Friday, August 25, 2023)   –   The New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA), in partnership with the New Mexico State University (NMSU) Arrowhead Center and Center for Border Economic Development (C-BED), have released an economic impact report encompassing the 2022 calendar year for Spaceport America.

The report provides economic information regarding activities occurring due to the existence of the spaceport. Additionally, the report illustrates numerous positive impacts from customer operations and events held as a result of the existence of the spaceport.

“At its core, Spaceport America is an infrastructure-developed project designed to spur economic development, specifically in the space industry for the region. It was paid for by the state of New Mexico and Sierra and Dona Ana counties,” commented Spaceport America Executive Director Scott McLaughlin. “As such, it is incumbent upon us to show what impacts and benefits the investment has created, and whether its operations create jobs and business opportunities. This report shows that the investment is paying off, and that the counties and the state are benefiting from this long-term effort.”

“Our impact study of Spaceport America utilized a standard methodology for economic impact analysis and is based on existing operations and activities that took place in 2022,” explained Arrowhead Center program advisor and co-author of the report Dr. Kramer Winingham. “The results are significant, showing that Spaceport America supports 548 direct jobs and 811 total jobs in New Mexico while contributing $138 million to economic output, $60 million to value added production and $46 million in labor income to New Mexico’s economy.”

NMSA plans to work with the Arrowhead Center and NMSU C-BED to produce a recurrent report on an annual basis. The year-by-year data will yield comprehensive information to better calculate the cumulative impact of the spaceport.

“It is a cliché to say, ‘space is hard’, but nothing travels to space without a spaceport. My staff and I, and the state of New Mexico, can honestly say ‘spaceporting is hard’ as well,” quipped McLaughlin. “This has been a long road requiring patience by the citizens and policy makers of New Mexico. It is also impressive that Virgin Galactic has continued their hard work and operations over the years, and now has gone to space three times this year. Their efforts, combined with those of our other tenants and numerous additional customers, are truly making a positive impact for jobs and the economy. Importantly though, we shouldn’t look at the spaceport in insolation, but should view what it does for the entire region, and how it catalyzes building a complete aerospace ecosystem.”

Seven major areas – tenant operations, tenant employment, privately-funded construction, out-of-state visitor spending, revenues, total economic impact and tax revenue impact – are detailed in the report. A brief introduction and overview of the industry is also included as is a summation of Spaceport America’s tenant base and other activities.

“We, and our partner organizations, are now calling this region ‘Space Valley’ since there are so many assets available for building the aerospace ecosystem,” McLaughlin expanded. “From Los Alamos to El Paso, the region is rich with research at federal laboratories and great universities, an increasing number of aerospace design and manufacturing companies, and a growing skilled workforce. With an FAA licensed spaceport, it can all be tied together for test, launch, and soon, reentry. Few parts of the country have all these key assets and can translate this into a culture of innovation and sustainable economic growth.”

“After meeting with tenants, we found Spaceport America has significant competitive advantages with regards to restricted airspace access, weather, and elevation that draws tenants to New Mexico who would not be here but for Spaceport America,” continued Winingham. “These are important attributes which can support further growth at Spaceport America even with the continued development of competing spaceports.”

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Spaceport America is the first purpose-built commercial spaceport in the world. The FAA-licensed launch complex, situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, vertical launch complexes, and about 340 days of sunshine and low humidity.

Some of the most respected companies in the commercial space industry are tenants at Spaceport America: Virgin Galactic, HAPSMobile/ AeroVironment, UP Aerospace, and SpinLaunch.

The Arrowhead Center at New Mexico State University helps innovators, entrepreneurs, and small businesses at any stage start and grow through our services, resources, expertise, and connections. It is also the technology transfer and commercialization arm of NMSU, working with campus inventors and innovators to protect their work and ensure it reaches the broadest possible markets. While the Arrowhead Center is based at NMSU in Las Cruces, N.M., and is deeply engaged in its on-campus community, it also works with people across the state, providing advice, mentorship, education, and hands-on experiences to pioneer new technologies, businesses, and partnerships.

Media Contact for Spaceport America
Charlie Hurley, Public Information Officer
(575) 305-5257 | media@spaceportamerica.com

 

Contact for Arrowhead Center
Dr. Kramer Winingham, Program Director
(575) 646-7151 | jkramer@nmsu.edu

LAS CRUCES, NM (August 4, 2023) 

The New Mexico Spaceport Authority is officially one step closer to obtaining a portion of a transformational grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation which has the potential to set the agency – and the region – up as a key player in global technology areas for decades to come.

Announced Wednesday, August 2, by the NSF, both the Space Valley Coalition and UTEP were listed as one of 16 finalists from around the nation for the first-ever NSF Regional Innovation Engines (NSF Engines) competition. Comprising the only two finalists in the aerospace category, the proposals submitted by the Space Valley Coalition and UTEP were originally one of 188 which were submitted. That number was parsed down to 34 semifinalists in June of 2023 before the most recent round of cuts left the NSF with the 16 finalists.

Should either the Space Valley Coalition or UTEP emerge as a winner of the competition, each partner organizations who collaborated to create the entries have the opportunity to receive a portion of up to $160 million over the course of a decade.

“Spaceport America is an incredible asset that has been supporting testing and operations for various aerospace clients for years, and is already helping transform the region economically,” remarked Spaceport America Executive Director Scott McLaughlin. “As the region’s gateway to space, we compare the spaceport to areas which boast international harbors or intercontinental airports where businesses are created to support commerce created from the ports. Being a partner organization in the finalist proposals is an honor and a demonstration of why the spaceport was created in the first place,” McLaughlin added.

The New Mexico Spaceport Authority, is one of the 10 organizations from throughout the states of New Mexico and Colorado who joined forces to submit an entry into the NSF Engines national competition. As recommended by the Space Valley Coalition, the New Mexico Trade Alliance spearheaded the grant and was joined by Central New Mexico Community College, Levado, LLC, Navajo Technical University, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partners, New Mexico State University, STEMarts Lab and the University of New Mexico in addition to NMSA.

Entitled Space for Earth, Space for All: Space Valley’s Role in Securing America’s Economic and Political Future, the Space Valley Coalition’s proposal is intended to position and leverage the current assets in place across Colorado and New Mexico with the hope of constructing the premier regional space industry innovation hub on the planet.

NMSA is also a partner organization in another finalist proposal, this one led by the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). Paso del Norte Innovation for Defense and Aerospace (IDEA) Engine, saw NMSA link up with the City of El Paso, the County of El Paso, the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining, UTEP and Workforce Solutions Borderplex, Inc., to propose a regional hub for advanced aerospace and defense manufacturing.

The overarching goals of the IDEA Engine coalition are:

• Re-imagine the Paso del Norte region as an advanced manufacturing and knowledge-based economy.
• Re-invent the economy to produce catalytic growth that increases the share of jobs in advanced industries in the region from 3.2% to 25%.
• Re-deploy manufacturing capabilities to support U.S. aerospace and defense industries.
• Re-build the region’s talent force with next generation STEM skills for aerospace and defense manufacturing, guaranteeing the entire community a path to the middle class.

As two of the 16 finalists from around the nation, the Space Valley Coalition, UTEP, and the partner organizations within each will be visited by various NSF representatives. These representatives serve as some of the main contributors to the final selection which will be unveiled by the close of the 2023 calendar year.

One year ago, the Space Valley Coalition made the cut as a finalist for the Economic Development Administration’s Build Back Better Challenge and received a $500K Phase One award to continue Coalition building and strategic planning.

“Aerospace is a fast-growing industry in New Mexico with incredible potential to drive global innovation while creating quality careers in communities across the state,” said Economic Development Department Deputy Secretary Jon Clark. “The State looks forward to welcoming the NSF to New Mexico and underscoring our commitment to making Space Valley the premier innovation ecosystem for the future of space.”

NSF Press Release

NSF Engines Program

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Launched by NSF’s Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP) and authorized by the “CHIPS and Science Act,” the NSF Engines program uniquely harnesses the nation’s science and technology research and development enterprise and regional-level resources. NSF Engines aspire to catalyze robust partnerships to positively impact the economy within a geographic region, address societal challenges, advance national competitiveness, and create local, high-wage jobs across the country.

Spaceport America is the first purpose-built commercial spaceport in the world. The FAA-licensed launch complex, situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, vertical launch complexes, and about 340 days of sunshine and low humidity.

Some of the most respected companies in the commercial space industry are tenants at Spaceport America: Virgin Galactic, HAPSMobile/ AeroVironment, UP Aerospace, and SpinLaunch.

Media Contact for Spaceport America
Charlie Hurley, Public Information Officer
(575) 305-5257 media@spaceportamerica.com