TechFlights
Runs Direct NASA funding flight tests space technologies commercial suborbital orbital vehicles.
TechFlights sat under NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate's Flight Opportunities program and funded flight tests for space technologies on commercial suborbital rockets, parabolic aircraft, high-altitude balloons, and hosted orbital missions. The solicitation ran annually in 2021, 2022, and 2023, which makes it a recurring NASA access route rather than a one-off challenge. It was a grant program for U.S.-based projects that could pair a payload with a commercial flight provider and carry out a real flight test. No award size is published publicly. Eligible applicants include for-profit firms, nonprofits, universities, and research organizations, but not individuals, and as of 2026-05-27 there is no documented 2025 or 2026 solicitation. NASA replaced TechFlights with TechLeap Prize in 2024, so applicants should treat this route as between cycles unless NASA revives it. The fit was strongest for teams that already had a credible payload, a flight partner, and a test plan that could move quickly from proposal to execution.
No upcoming rounds verified. Cadence: Annual.