Cecil Spaceport lands its second space launch operator

The company's first launch is scheduled for the third quarter of 2021

Archive photo of U.S. Navy Naval Air Station Cecil Field. Courtesy of U.S. Defense Imagery via Wikimedia Commons

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Cecil Spaceport has landed its second space launch operator.

On Tuesday, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority announced that Aevum was awarded a $4.9 million contract from the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center to launch small, autonomous defense satellites from the spaceport.

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The Agile Small Launch Operational Normalizer 45 space lift mission, which marks the Alabama-based company's first Air Force mission, will help support the Department of Defense's Space Test program.

"This is exciting news for Cecil Spaceport that we believe validates Jacksonville's position as an emerging player in the space industry," JAA CEO Mark Van Loh said in a statement.

Aevum joins Generation Orbit, the first company to sign an operating agreement with JAA to launch out of Cecil, which is one of the few commercial spaceports licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The first Aevum launch is scheduled to take place in the third quarter of 2021.