SAN FRANCISCO – Quebec’s government announced an award of $10 million Canadian dollars ($7.3 million) to Canadian rocket startup Reaction Dynamics and software developer Maya HTT.
The funding will enable Reaction Dynamic to continue working with Canadian software and engineering services firm Maya HTT to qualify the hybrid propulsion system and establish a testing facility.
The goal is to ensure the hybrid propulsion system is not only built in Canada, but 100 percent from Quebec, Premier François Legault said June 9 in a news conference broadcast on Facebook.
Aurora Rocket
Reaction Dynamics, founded in 2017, is developing the Aurora rocket to send satellites with a mass of 200 kilograms or less to low-Earth orbit. The first suborbital launch is expected in late 2025, followed by orbital flights in 2027 or 2028.
“Our proposal is a fast service dedicated to satellite operators in the commercial and defense sectors,” Bachar Elzein, Reaction Dynamics CEO and chief technology officer, said during the news conference. “The equivalent of a private-jet flight at an economy-class price. The support of the Quebec government will allow Reaction Dynamics take the steps towards our planned demonstration flight.”
Quebec is awarding $8 million to Reaction Dynamics and $2 million to Maya HTT to develop simulation tools for optimizing engine development.
Sovereign Capabilities
Quebec made this investment with commercial, civil and defense applications in mind. Legault alluded to the geopolitical instability that is prompting nations to seek sovereign space systems.
Canada and European countries “can’t take the chance of hoping that if I get attacked, it might be Trump who comes to defend me,” Legault said, adding that President Donald Trump is “not a reliable partner.”
Christine Fréchette, Quebec’s minister of economy, innovation and energy, said the award to Reaction Dynamics will help Quebec become “a world leader in aerospace.”
Aero Montreal President and CEO Mélanie Lussier lauded Quebec’s funding for Reaction Dynamics and Maya HTT, saying the investment will help “ensure Canada’s technological sovereignty. Until now, to launch a satellite, Canada had to rely on the platforms of other nations.”
