Elytra Orbital Transfer Vehicle

Elytra is Firefly Aerospace’s orbital transfer vehicle (OTV), designed to provide in-space transportation and deployment services after launch. Named after the wing casings of beetles, Elytra is intended to carry payloads from an initial launch orbit to their final operational orbits — whether LEO, MEO, GTO, or beyond — serving as a ‘space truck’ that completes the last mile of satellite delivery.

Elytra is powered by blue-water resistojets and a green propellant propulsion system for precision orbital maneuvers. Its solar panel array provides power for both propulsion and hosted payloads. The vehicle can host and deploy multiple payloads from a single launch, and it is designed for multiple mission extension use cases including satellite inspection, in-orbit servicing, and responsive orbit changes.

A key early mission for Elytra involves a National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) responsive space demonstration in collaboration with Xtenti, LLC, whose FANTM-RiDE dispenser integrates with the vehicle to enable rapid rideshare payload reconfiguration and deployment. Elytra will launch aboard a Firefly Alpha rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Firefly offers Elytra as a commercial service for satellite operators seeking last-mile delivery, orbit optimization, or responsive on-orbit operations without the cost of dedicated propulsion on every spacecraft.