Utah company, Rocket Crafters, relocating to Titusville

By Greg Pallone, Reporter
Last Updated: Tuesday, July 10, 2012
TITUSVILLE -- 

A Utah rocket maker is moving to the Space Coast, bringing with it the potential for more than 1,000 jobs and suborbital space planes soaring to amazing speeds from Titusville in the future.

Rocket Crafters -- builders of hybrid rocket and such planes -- unveiled its plan Tuesday at the Space Coast Regional Airport, which officials now say will one day become a spaceport.

With a $72 million company investment as part of “Project Speed,” and millions more in support from Space Coast economic leaders in constructing a 400,000 square-foot facility the company said they will hire more than 1,300 workers.

Part of the reason Brevard won over four other states in the running -- a highly skilled, former shuttle worker pool already in place, plus new faces from local engineering schools.

"We are also looking to those universities, your college system here to provide us with a lot of employees," says Rocket Crafters President Ron Jones.

The company was offered tax incentives to offset re-location costs.

Rocket Crafter space planes are touted as one day changing international travel.

Once developed, a flight from Melbourne, Florida to Melbourne, Australia (now a 16 hour plane ride) will only take two hours.

Operations in a temporary facility are set to begin late this year.

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