Reaction Engines, making hypersonic planes and space launch, has established a US subsidiary to lead engagement with US government

Reaction Engines has also established a new US-based subsidiary, Reaction Engines Inc. to support the expansion of the company’s development efforts and lead engagement with potential US government and industry partners.

The company has appointed Dr. Adam Dissel, an aerospace leader with over 15 years’ experience in the development of advanced vehicle systems, to lead the new subsidiary as President of Reaction Engines Inc. Dr. Dissel joins Reaction Engines Inc. from Lockheed Martin Space Systems where he served as System Architect for Responsive Space. He will report to Mark Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of Reaction Engines Ltd.

Mark Thomas commented “The establishment of a US office is the obvious next step for us, building on excellent work done under a collaborative R and D agreement with future export markets in mind. I am delighted that Adam has joined the team as President of Reaction Engines Inc. His skillset, experience and strong customer focus is very relevant to the task ahead and I look forward to working together to grow this part of our business.”

The company has appointed Mark Wood to the newly created role of Chief Operating Officer and Engineering Director, with responsibility for operational leadership, improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the business through integration, collaboration and operational best practices.

Mark Wood joins Reaction Engines from Safran Power UK, where he most recently held the position of Engineering Director, with responsibility for Safran Power Engineering in the UK and for engineering services across the whole Power division. He will report to Mark Thomas, Reaction Engines’ Chief Executive Officer.

He will shape the company’s organisational development for the future and take on functional leadership of the Engineering Team, enabling Richard Varvill to focus on Chief Engineering the SABRE engine and technologies.

The Air Force Research Laboratory is particularly interested in the heat exchanger technology at the heart of the Saber engine, which is designed to power a vehicle from standstill on the runway to around Mach 5.5 in air-breathing mode before transitioning to rocket mode for the jump to low Earth orbit. The potential capability of the cycle, which harvests oxygen from the atmosphere through an innovative heat exchanger system, has also attracted interest in its use as a propulsion system for atmospheric hypersonic vehicles as well as space transports.