Astroport Secures NASA Phase II-E Award and Knight Aerospace Investment
Astroport Space Technologies, a developer of autonomous lunar construction and in-situ materials manufacturing technologies, has secured a Phase II-E award through NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR/STTR) program to advance technologies designed for future lunar surface infrastructure.The NASA award will support Astroport’s continued work on lunar site development and extreme-environment civil engineering systems. The required matching funds have been provided through a strategic equity investment from Knight Aerospace, a global company specializing in specialized airborne modular systems, cargo palletization and advanced transport solutions.
The partnership brings together Astroport’s experience in autonomous lunar construction with Knight Aerospace’s capabilities in advanced manufacturing, modular pallet systems and rapid-deployment containment solutions. The companies intend to develop hardware capable of supporting the movement, deployment and protection of equipment and materials on the Moon.Their joint work will focus on payload integration pallets, deployment fixtures and vacuum-rated containment systems designed for the demanding conditions of the lunar surface. These systems will need to operate in an environment characterized by reduced gravity, significant temperature variations and highly abrasive lunar dust.The collaboration represents an effort to establish a more integrated logistics and construction architecture for future lunar operations, as commercial and government activities increasingly look toward sustained infrastructure beyond Earth.
Advancing Lunar Surface Infrastructure
Astroport’s technology portfolio is focused on the development of infrastructure needed to support long-term activity on the lunar surface. Its planned site-preparation architectures include landing pads, secure haul roads and protective infrastructure intended to support future lunar transportation and construction operations.The company is pursuing approaches that use autonomous construction technologies and materials produced at or near the lunar worksite. Such capabilities could eventually reduce the amount of construction material that would need to be transported from Earth.The Phase II-E award provides an opportunity to accelerate this technology development while connecting Astroport’s lunar infrastructure work with Knight Aerospace’s expertise in modular systems and specialized transportation equipment.
The companies plan to combine their respective capabilities to create hardware that can support the movement and deployment of high-value equipment required for lunar construction. Payload integration systems will be designed with the physical and environmental conditions of the Moon in mind, including vacuum exposure, temperature extremes and abrasive dust.These requirements create engineering challenges that differ significantly from conventional terrestrial logistics. Equipment intended for lunar deployment must be capable of surviving launch, transportation and landing before functioning in an environment where maintenance and replacement options are considerably more limited.
Knight Aerospace Expands Into the Space Sector
Knight Aerospace brings decades of experience in specialized modular systems, palletized equipment and roll-on/roll-off solutions for aviation and other demanding applications.The company provides advanced manufacturing and modular integration capabilities supported by ISO and AS9100-certified engineering processes. Its experience includes systems designed for rapid deployment and specialized containment, capabilities that can be adapted to emerging requirements in space logistics.
Through its equity investment in Astroport, Knight Aerospace is expanding its activities into the space sector while applying established manufacturing and modular transportation expertise to lunar infrastructure.The partnership creates a connection between terrestrial aerospace logistics and future off-world logistics requirements. Technologies originally developed for transporting and deploying specialized equipment can potentially be adapted for the Moon, where payload protection, efficient packaging and reliable deployment will be essential.The collaboration is also intended to support the development of modular systems that can transition between different operating environments. The companies see potential applications not only for lunar missions but also for terrestrial operations requiring rapid deployment in challenging environments.
Building a Cislunar Logistics Architecture
A central objective of the partnership is to contribute to the logistics infrastructure required for a growing cislunar economy.As activity expands between Earth and the Moon, transportation systems will need to move equipment, construction materials and other high-value assets through increasingly complex supply chains. The companies believe modular logistics technologies can play a role in connecting manufacturing operations on Earth with construction and infrastructure activities on the lunar surface.
Astroport and Knight Aerospace intend to develop systems that bridge this logistics chain, from manufacturing and integration facilities to launch and transportation operations and, ultimately, lunar deployment.San Antonio is expected to play an important role in the collaboration. Both companies have facilities in the Port San Antonio area, creating geographic proximity between their operations. Port San Antonio is already home to aerospace, maintenance, repair and overhaul, depot and transportation-related activities.
Astroport CEO and founder Sam Ximenes said the companies’ proximity creates an opportunity to connect manufacturing and logistics capabilities on Earth with future lunar operations.NASA’s Phase II-E award validates the technology our team has built, and this partnership is about executing the operational blueprint for humanity’s permanent presence beyond Earth,” Ximenes said.He added that Knight Aerospace’s experience in intermodal modular systems and aviation-grade manufacturing provides an established aerospace and defense manufacturing capability that can be incorporated into Astroport’s lunar supply chain.According to Ximenes, the partnership will also build on the existing aerospace and transportation ecosystem surrounding Port San Antonio.
Potential Dual-Use Applications
The companies also identify potential applications for the technologies beyond lunar exploration.The modular systems being developed for lunar transportation and infrastructure could have applications in disaster response, defense operations and other situations requiring the rapid deployment of equipment into difficult environments.On Earth, modular enclosures and specialized transport systems can be used to package and move critical equipment where conventional infrastructure may be damaged, inaccessible or unavailable. Similar principles could be applied to lunar missions, where equipment must be protected throughout transportation and deployment.
The partnership therefore represents a dual-use technology effort, connecting space infrastructure development with terrestrial logistics and emergency-response requirements.For the U.S. space supply chain, the companies expect the collaboration to support advanced manufacturing capabilities and high-skilled aerospace employment. The work is also intended to contribute to the broader development of technologies associated with cislunar transportation and infrastructure.
Supporting the Future Space Workforce
Workforce development is another component of the collaboration.Astroport operates the WEX Foundation, a nonprofit space education organization that works with NASA to introduce young people to space-related careers and STEM education.
The companies view workforce development as an important part of building the industrial capabilities required for future lunar operations. Developing lunar infrastructure will require engineers, technicians, manufacturing specialists, logistics professionals and other skilled workers across multiple disciplines.Knight Aerospace President and CEO Bianca Rhodes said the company’s investment reflects its interest in supporting technologies that could become important as lunar activity moves beyond exploration toward longer-term surface operations.As humanity transitions from lunar exploration to permanent surface operations, specialized payload integration and containment hardware become mission-critical,” Rhodes said.
She described Astroport as a company addressing foundational infrastructure challenges associated with off-planet operations and said Knight Aerospace’s matching investment demonstrates its commitment to expanding the technology together.Rhodes also emphasized the workforce-development component of the partnership.Astroport’s WEX Foundation is working with NASA to help prepare students for potential careers in the space sector by providing STEM-focused educational opportunities. The initiative is intended to connect emerging space technologies with efforts to develop the people needed to design, manufacture and operate them.
Preparing for Long-Term Lunar Operations
The development of reliable logistics and infrastructure will be an important consideration as lunar missions become more complex.Early lunar missions have generally focused on exploration and scientific objectives, but future activities could require a broader range of infrastructure, including landing areas, transportation routes, protective structures, equipment storage and other surface-support systems.
Astroport’s work on autonomous construction and in-situ materials manufacturing is aimed at addressing some of these requirements. By combining those capabilities with Knight Aerospace’s modular transportation and containment expertise, the companies are seeking to create systems that can support the movement and deployment of equipment in the lunar environment.The Phase II-E award and associated investment provide a framework for advancing this work. The collaboration also illustrates how commercial aerospace manufacturers can contribute technologies and industrial capabilities to the expanding space economy.
For Knight Aerospace, the partnership provides a pathway to apply its experience in modular systems and specialized logistics to a new operating environment. For Astroport, the relationship adds an established aerospace manufacturing partner as the company advances its lunar infrastructure technologies.Together, the companies are targeting a logistics architecture capable of supporting the transition from individual lunar missions toward more sustained surface activity.The collaboration combines NASA-backed technology development, private investment, advanced manufacturing and workforce development around a common objective: preparing the infrastructure and logistics systems that could support future operations on the Moon.
As lunar exploration progresses toward longer-duration missions and potentially permanent infrastructure, the ability to transport, protect, deploy and maintain critical equipment will become increasingly important. Astroport and Knight Aerospace’s partnership is designed to address those requirements by connecting proven terrestrial manufacturing and logistics expertise with the specialized demands of lunar surface operations.
About Knight Aerospace
Knight Aerospace is an AS9100/ISO 9001-certified global leader in the design, engineering, and manufacture of specialized, interchangeable, roll-on/roll-off palletized modules, air medical transport suites, and air cargo containment systems. Headquartered at Port San Antonio, Texas, Knight delivers intermodal, custom modular logistics solutions for military, government, and commercial operators worldwide.Astroport is a space civil engineering and materials manufacturing company based at Port San Antonio, Texas. Astroport develops patented autonomous robotic technologies that transform planetary soil (regolith) into durable feedstock for autonomous construction of landing pads, haul roads, blast and radiation shields, and habitats for NASA and commercial space missions. Its non-profit arm, the WEX Foundation, is a NASA education partner preparing the nation’s Artemis Generation for global leadership in space exploration.