The 68,000-square-foot Indiana Payload Integration Facility will prepare experimental hypersonic payloads for flight. It will support advanced manufacturing, integration and testing activities.
Kratos said the facility can handle up to six experimental payloads simultaneously. The site will support programs including the Multi-Service Advanced Capabilities Hypersonic Testbed, or MACH-TB.
The company said the investment will increase the tempo of Mach 5+ testing. It is also intended to accelerate development of new weapons systems.
“The IPIF investment in southern Indiana brings online a national asset and critically needed infrastructure to rapidly scale the cadence of hypersonic testing in the United States,” said Mike Johns, Vice President of Kratos SRE. “The facility will be a gathering place for the most advanced technologies and companies in hypersonics.”
The facility expands Kratos’ infrastructure for hypersonic and advanced technology development. The company provides both propulsion and flyer systems for hypersonic programs.
Its portfolio includes the low-cost Erinyes Hypersonic Flyer and Dark Fury. Kratos also produces Zeus and Oriole solid rocket motors.
The new facility is located near Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division. Kratos sees the location as part of a wider defense-industrial expansion in southern Indiana.
“Kratos’ infrastructure expansion near the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division is part of our strategy to establish an advanced defense hub in Southern Indiana,” said Dave Carter, President of Kratos Defense & Rocket Support Services. “We are building strategic, purpose-built facilities that enhance U.S. defense and aerospace capabilities.”
Kratos expects the facility to create more than 100 high-technology jobs. The company estimates average annual wages above $80,000.
Significant hiring is already underway, according to Kratos. The facility adds dedicated capacity for faster preparation of experimental hypersonic payloads.
