{"id":23450548,"date":"2026-09-19T13:54:58","date_gmt":"2026-09-19T11:54:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/castelion-blackbeard-navy-production-order-afrl-funding-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T15:20:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T13:20:57","slug":"castelion-blackbeard-navy-production-order-afrl-funding-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/it\/castelion-blackbeard-navy-production-order-afrl-funding-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Blackbeard Goes Into Production: 444 Rounds and an Air Force Cheque"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\n<!-- mfsh:top -->\n\n<style>\n.mfsh-trigger{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:10px;height:44px;padding:0 18px;margin:0 0 26px;border:2px solid 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This week the US Navy placed a production order worth up to $200 million, and the Air Force quietly added $16.4 million to a research contract of its own.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Two services, two budgets, one missile built by a company that did not exist five years ago.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border:1px solid #e2e7ee;padding:20px 24px;margin:26px 0\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 10px;font-weight:700;font-size:18px;color:#0d1117\">Quick Facts<\/p><ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:20px;font-size:15px;line-height:1.8;color:#454e5e\"><li><strong>New Air Force money:<\/strong> AFRL added $16.4 million to a Castelion contract, taking it from $20.9 million to $37.2 million<\/li><li><strong>New Navy money:<\/strong> a production delivery order worth up to $200 million, placed 14 September and announced 15 September 2026<\/li><li><strong>First production lot:<\/strong> 444 all-up rounds, following 50 early operational capability weapons ordered in June<\/li><li><strong>Weapon:<\/strong> Blackbeard, designed to fly above Mach 5 while manoeuvring inside the atmosphere<\/li><li><strong>Carriage:<\/strong> air-launched from aircraft such as the F\/A-18, with a ground-launched variant compatible with HIMARS<\/li><li><strong>Company:<\/strong> Castelion, founded in 2022 by three former SpaceX engineers, headquartered in Torrance, California<\/li><li><strong>AFRL work:<\/strong> fiscal 2025 research funds, running through 30 June 2028, managed from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base<\/li><li><strong>Factory:<\/strong> Project Ranger, a 1,000-acre campus at Rio Rancho, New Mexico, which the company puts at over $250 million, targeting 500 weapons a year<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The Air Force Money Is the Smaller, Stranger Half<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The Navy order is the headline. The Air Force Research Laboratory modification is the more interesting document.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>AFRL added $16.4 million to an existing Castelion contract for a low-cost, mass-producible long-range strike weapon, taking its total from $20.9 million to $37.2 million. The work is funded with fiscal 2025 research money, continues at the company\u2019s Torrance headquarters through 30 June 2028, and is managed from Wright-Patterson.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>That is not a lot of money by Pentagon standards. It is, however, a second customer. Until now Blackbeard has been a Navy and Army story. An Air Force research laboratory putting its own funds behind the same airframe means the service is at minimum keeping the option open.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Eleven Months, One Escalation<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Put the awards in a row, as the chart at the top of this article does, and the shape of the thing becomes obvious.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Army and Navy integration awards came in October 2025. In February 2026 the Navy picked Blackbeard as the first weapon candidate under its Multi-mission Affordable Capacity Effector programme. April brought $105 million to integrate the weapon onto the F\/A-18E\/F and run live-fire testing in the Indo-Pacific. June bought 50 early operational capability prototypes for $23.4 million. August added nearly $90 million toward programme-of-record status, including design changes intended to speed up sales to allies.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Then 14 September: a production delivery order worth up to $200 million.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7;display:flex;gap:20px;align-items:flex-start\"><div><em>&ldquo;an air-launched, hypersonic strike weapon that provides carrier-based strike fighters with a responsive, long-range, high-speed strike option against maritime and land targets, enhancing survivability against advanced air defenses while significantly increasing magazine depth&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>US Navy<\/strong> &mdash; Press release announcing the Blackbeard production order, as quoted by Defense News, 17 September 2026<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Castelion says the first production lot is <strong>444 all-up rounds<\/strong>, following the 50 early operational capability weapons ordered in June. Work runs at Project Ranger in Rio Rancho and at the Torrance facility.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #1565c0;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7;display:flex;gap:20px;align-items:flex-start\"><div><em>&ldquo;The Navy&rsquo;s decision to move into production reflects its confidence in the Blackbeard program, and the progress we&rsquo;ve made together. Blackbeard was engineered from day one for the production line, and we look forward to delivering this capability to the fleet.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Bryon Hargis<\/strong> &mdash; Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Castelion, company statement, 14 September 2026<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pz7tEwgZj8c\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Castelion\u2019s own film announcing its Series B funding round. It is a company pitch rather than a weapon test, but it is the primary source on how the founders think about building missiles the way SpaceX builds rockets.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Why the Navy Is in a Hurry<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Because it has done this the slow way already and it did not work. From 2021 the Navy pursued HALO, the Hypersonic Air-Launched Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare weapon, with Raytheon and Lockheed Martin competing and a target of fielding before 2030. In 2024 the service cancelled it, citing budget constraints.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>MACE is the rebuilt version of that requirement with the price tag as the leading specification rather than an afterthought. Congress agreed, adding more than $140 million to the programme in the fiscal 2026 appropriations act, more than doubling its base funding. The fiscal 2027 request asks for $156 million to buy 353 MACE missiles.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #1565c0;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7;display:flex;gap:20px;align-items:flex-start\"><div><em>&ldquo;By leveraging advanced commercial manufacturing methods and a vertically integrated production line, this landmark program introduces immediate &lsquo;affordable mass&rsquo; to the fleet.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>US Navy<\/strong> &mdash; On the Department of the Navy Rapid Capabilities Office, as quoted by Defense News, 17 September 2026<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/09\/fa-18f-super-hornet-vx-23-captive-carry-standoff-weapon.jpg\" alt=\"An F\/A-18F Super Hornet of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 conducting a captive carry flight test with a stand-off weapon\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">An F\/A-18F Super Hornet of VX-23, the Salty Dogs, on a captive carry flight test. The weapon shown here is an AGM-88E, not a Blackbeard; no photograph of Blackbeard on a Super Hornet has been released. (U.S. Navy photo by Greg L. Davis)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Five Hundred a Year, in New Mexico<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Castelion was founded in 2022 by three former SpaceX engineers, and the SpaceX inheritance shows in the manufacturing strategy more than in the missile. The company is building Project Ranger, a 1,000-acre campus at Rio Rancho, New Mexico, which it values at more than $250 million, with a stated goal of 500 weapons a year.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Five hundred a year is the number that matters. A hypersonic weapon that costs a fortune and arrives in dozens is a niche capability. One that arrives in hundreds is a magazine. The Navy\u2019s own language about magazine depth and affordable mass is aimed squarely at that distinction.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>What nobody will say is the unit price. Both the Navy and Castelion describe Blackbeard only as low-cost and mass-producible. No per-round figure has been published, and we are not going to invent one.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The Part to Watch<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The August award included design changes specifically intended to speed up sales to allies. That is a company and a customer planning for export before the weapon has reached initial operational capability, which is unusual and tells you how confident both are.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Defense News, citing Inside Defense, reports Blackbeard is intended to arm the F-35 as well as the Super Hornet. That carriage claim rests on a single chain of attribution and should be treated as such until somebody photographs it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Either way, the trajectory is not subtle. Three years from founding to a production order, with two services and Congress all pushing in the same direction.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-style:italic;font-size:14px;color:#777\">Sources: US Navy press release; Defense News; Defence Blog; Inside Defense; US Department of Defense contract announcements.<\/p>\n\n<!-- mfsh:bottom -->\n\n<button type=\"button\" class=\"mfsh-trigger mfsh-bottom\" data-mfsh-placement=\"bottom\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><svg><use href=\"#mfsh-i-share\"\/><\/svg>Share this story<\/button>\n\n<!-- \/mfsh:bottom -->\n\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<style>.mfq{margin:34px 0 8px}.mfq h2{font:26px\/1.3 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117;padding-top:22px;margin:0 0 6px}.mfq .qa details{border-top:1px solid #5C91FF;margin:0;padding:0}.mfq .qa details:last-of-type{border-bottom:1px solid #e2e7ee}.mfq .qa summary{cursor:pointer;list-style:none;display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;gap:16px;padding:22px 26px;font:18px\/1.7 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117}.mfq .qa summary::-webkit-details-marker{display:none}.mfq .qa summary::after{content:\"+\";font:24px Helvetica,sans-serif;color:#3568e0;flex:0 0 auto}.mfq .qa details[open] summary::after{content:\"\\2013\"}.mfq .qa details:hover summary{color:#3568e0}.mfq .qa .a{font:16px\/1.7 \"Gilroy regular\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#454e5e;padding:0 26px 24px}.mfq .qa .a a{color:#3568e0}@media(max-width:680px){.mfq .qa summary{padding:18px 14px;font-size:17px}.mfq .qa .a{padding:0 14px 20px}}<\/style>\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"mfq\"><h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2><div class=\"qa\"><details open><summary>What is the Castelion Blackbeard missile?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">A hypersonic strike weapon designed to fly faster than Mach 5 while manoeuvring inside the atmosphere. There is an air-launched version for aircraft such as the F\/A-18, and a ground-launched variant compatible with the HIMARS launcher. Defense News, citing Inside Defense, describes it as a stand-off weapon with a 200-nautical-mile range.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How much has the Air Force put into Blackbeard?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Air Force Research Laboratory added $16.4 million to an existing Castelion contract, taking its total value from $20.9 million to $37.2 million. The work uses fiscal 2025 research funds, runs through 30 June 2028 at the company\u2019s Torrance headquarters, and is managed from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What did the Navy order in September 2026?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">A production delivery order worth up to $200 million, placed on 14 September and announced by the service the following day. It is the largest single award in a sequence that has run since October 2025, and it moves Blackbeard from prototypes into production.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Who is Castelion?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">A defence startup founded in 2022 by three former SpaceX engineers, headquartered in Torrance, California. It is building a 1,000-acre manufacturing campus called Project Ranger at Rio Rancho, New Mexico, which the company values at more than $250 million, with a stated goal of 500 weapons a year.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What is the MACE programme?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Multi-mission Affordable Capacity Effector, the Navy programme under which Blackbeard was selected as the first weapon candidate in February 2026. Congress added more than $140 million to MACE in the fiscal 2026 defence appropriations act, more than doubling its base funding, and the Navy has requested $156 million in fiscal 2027 to buy 353 MACE missiles.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What happened to the Navy\u2019s earlier hypersonic missile programme?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Navy pursued HALO, the Hypersonic Air-Launched Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare weapon, from 2021, with Raytheon and Lockheed Martin competing and a hope of fielding before 2030. The service cancelled HALO in 2024, citing budget constraints. Blackbeard is the cheaper answer to the same requirement.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How much does a Blackbeard cost per round?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">No public figure exists. Both the Navy and the company describe the weapon only as low-cost, affordable mass and mass-producible. Anyone quoting a specific per-round price is guessing, and we are not going to join them.<\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What is the Castelion Blackbeard missile?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"A hypersonic strike weapon designed to fly faster than Mach 5 while manoeuvring inside the atmosphere. There is an air-launched version for aircraft such as the F\/A-18, and a ground-launched variant compatible with the HIMARS launcher. Defense News, citing Inside Defense, describes it as a stand-off weapon with a 200-nautical-mile range.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How much has the Air Force put into Blackbeard?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The Air Force Research Laboratory added $16.4 million to an existing Castelion contract, taking its total value from $20.9 million to $37.2 million. The work uses fiscal 2025 research funds, runs through 30 June 2028 at the company\u2019s Torrance headquarters, and is managed from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What did the Navy order in September 2026?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"A production delivery order worth up to $200 million, placed on 14 September and announced by the service the following day. It is the largest single award in a sequence that has run since October 2025, and it moves Blackbeard from prototypes into production.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who is Castelion?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"A defence startup founded in 2022 by three former SpaceX engineers, headquartered in Torrance, California. It is building a 1,000-acre manufacturing campus called Project Ranger at Rio Rancho, New Mexico, which the company values at more than $250 million, with a stated goal of 500 weapons a year.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What is the MACE programme?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Multi-mission Affordable Capacity Effector, the Navy programme under which Blackbeard was selected as the first weapon candidate in February 2026. 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Anyone quoting a specific per-round price is guessing, and we are not going to join them.\"}}]}<\/script><div style=\"background:#f0f4ff;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:16px 20px;margin:32px 0 8px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:600;color:#333\">Related Posts<\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/blackbeard-hypersonic-missile-super-hornet-navy-order\/\">A $300,000 Hypersonic Missile for the Super Hornet<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/blackbeard-hypersonic-missile-super-hornet-testing-begins-2026\/\">Blackbeard on the Super Hornet: Hypersonic Testing Begins<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Navy ordered up to $200 million of Blackbeard, a first lot of 444 rounds. Days later the Air Force Research Laboratory added $16.4 million of its own.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":23449840,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[664,670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23450548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-military-aviation","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Blackbeard Production Order: 444 Rounds for the Navy | MiGFlug<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Navy placed a Blackbeard production order worth up to $200m for 444 rounds, and the Air Force Research Laboratory added $16.4m days later.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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