Senior Alabama officials recently joined Aerojet Rocketdyne’s CEO Eileen Drake and executive chairman Warren Lichtenstein at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the company’s newest rocket propulsion Advanced Manufacturing Facility (AMF), marking the latest milestone in the company’s on-going expansion in the ‘Rocket City’.

The 136,000ft² AMF will produce advanced propulsion products such as solid-rocket motor cases and other hardware for the Standard Missile-3, Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system, and other US defence and space programmes.

Ms Drake said: “The AMF gives Aerojet Rocketdyne the capabilities we need to advance our nation’s security today and to further technologies that will allow us to meet the challenges of tomorrow.”

The Huntsville expansion and AMF are part of Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Competitive Improvement Program, which is aimed at reducing costs and increasing operational efficiency.

The company officially established Huntsville as the headquarters of its Defence Business Unit in 2016.

Its local workforce, which numbered about 70 in 2017, is now up to more than 400, with additional growth planned as the AMF reaches full production rates.