AFA WINTER 2026 — Startup Ursa Major this week is unveiling a new hypersonic missile system dubbed HAVOC that the company plans to mostly manufacture in-house, the firm’s newly minted CEO Chris Spagnoletti said in an exclusive interview with Breaking Defense.
The United States has “a lot of different flavors of really sophisticated [hypersonic] weapons,” with a separate set of smaller munitions on the lower end, Spagnoletti said. “We believe that HAVOC can be a complement on both ends of that spectrum, in between the high boutique and very exquisite munition, and the very low-cost, high-volume.”
Havoc is based largely around the company’s 4,000-pound-thrust Draper engine, currently in development with funding from the Air Force. As a liquid rocket engine, the Draper can be throttled — unlike solid rocket motors (SRMs) that use a pre-mixed propellant and oxidizer that cannot be controlled once ignited — and is designed to be more safely stored than other liquid rocket engines, providing the tactical storage capabilities typical for an SRM.
As a modular missile system, Spagnoletti said HAVOC could be launched from a wide variety of platforms: as a one-stage missile from a fighter, or with additional stages for applications like vertical take-off. Describing it as “medium range” without providing further detail, Spagnoletti added the company is aiming for an all-up-round to cost under $3 million a piece — a target price tag outlined by former Pentagon acquisition chief Bill LaPlante in light of the expensive costs of new hypersonic weapons.
“So it’s really exciting, because of the flexibility of the different mission sets that we can serve all of the surfaces, including space-based applications,” he said.
Spagnoletti explained the Draper engine offers an additional leg-up compared to other hypersonic systems, which typically come in the form of either cruise missiles or glide vehicles, based on simple physics. Hypersonic cruise missiles like the Air Force’s HACM system, for example, rely on air-breathing engines such as scramjets, meaning they need to operate lower in the atmosphere. That denser atmosphere, in turn, creates high amounts of heat, requiring advanced and more expensive thermal protection properties.
HAVOC doesn’t have to face that issue, Spagnoletti said, because it can operate in the upper bounds of the atmosphere and not be subjected to as much heat as a result — saving costs for thermal protection. And when it comes to boost-glide comparisons, where a glide vehicle like the Air Force’s ARRW system has to be carried by a large aircraft like a bomber, HAVOC’s relatively compact size means it can be launched from a wider range of platforms, according to Spagnoletti.
Hypersonic weapons, defined as those that can fly at speeds in excess of Mach 5, are also typically characterized by the ability to maneuver in later stages of flight, making them harder to intercept. HAVOC, Spagnoletti explained, can offer a form of maneuverability through its ability to throttle, meaning it can speed up or slow down to throw off attempts to knock it down.
“The differentiator, we believe, is the fact that HAVOC is an adaptable boost system,” he said. “So not only can we go fast, but we can deep throttle and leverage the fact that we are not required to stay on the whole time. We are not required to stay at the same altitude. So what that does is, opens the aperture for survivability, confusing the enemy.”
HAVOC could serve a variety of roles, Spagnoletti reasoned, from strike missions to target practice for defending against other hypersonic systems. Ursa Major has also marketed the Draper engine as a potential propulsion system for space-based interceptors in line with the Trump administration’s Golden Dome project, but Spagnoletti clarified that HAVOC specifically is not being marketed for that purpose.
Ursa Major had hoped to fly the Draper engine by the end of 2025, but some snafus — a government shutdown, a pre-launch technical issue and inclement weather — have delayed its flight. Spagnoletti said the company is now expecting flight testing to commence “imminently.” The development campaign involves Ursa Major building the flight vehicle as well, setting up HAVOC as the natural progression of that work.
Looking ahead, Spagnoletti says Ursa Major is planning “maturity growth missions” over the next 12 to 14 months to develop HAVOC, culminating in a “boosted hypersonic test flight.” If all goes well, the new missile could be fielded before the end of the decade.
As a manufacturer of SRMs, Spagnoletti reasoned Ursa Major would be capable of producing 80 to 90 percent of the content of HAVOC, identifying seeker technology as something that could be outsourced. The company is currently scouting sites to expand its manufacturing capacity, he added.
A New Business Model, And CEO
Ursa Major’s entry into the missile market also sets up an interesting new dynamic, where the company will compete against other prime contractors who they may be actively supplying propulsion systems to.
“As we get in the all-up-round, now we start to encroach on somebody else’s line of business, and we’re prepared for that,” Spagnoletti said, framing the HAVOC announcement as a declaration to become a missile prime contractor.
“Quite frankly, I think all of our prime partners have known that. They’ve watched us build our own vehicles, they’ve actually supported certain parts and pieces of this development,” he said. “If Northrop [Grumman] or another prime wants to get their hands on a propulsion system that is good for the warfighter, that’s good for Ursa. So we are not shying away from helping our potential competitors in the all-up-round arena. I think there’s just too much space right now to put up any real walls.”
Spagnoletti’s appointment elevating him to CEO from his previous role leading Ursa Major’s liquid systems division came as a surprise when it was announced Feb. 19. Speaking to Breaking Defense in his first interview since taking the job, Spagnoletti said the company’s previous CEO, Dan Jablonsky, made a “personal decision to move to something else” and that the former colleagues remain good friends.
Describing Jablonsky as someone who “opened doors” for Ursa Major, Spagnoletti said his focus is now on keeping those avenues open while increasing the company’s manufacturing footprint and executing on its products in development.
“Dan did a great job at uplifting Ursa. For the past year, we had our greatest year on record,” Spagnoletti said. “We’re headed into the next best, greatest year, and I am focused on scaling.”
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