Castellion’s Hypersonic Missile Factory Raises Safety Fears in New Mexico Community

Sally Schultz thought she had struck gold when she purchased land in Rio Rancho Estates, an unincorporated census-designated community on the outskirts of Rio Rancho, New Mexico. A single mother of four, Schultz came to build her own mansion and find stability after her divorce.

For $3,500, she bought a half-acre lot for her trailer in a rural area near several elementary schools and parks. In a relatively short time, she was growing corn, pumpkins, and green chiles from the soil. The inexpensive land became a haven for Schultz—and a second chance at life.

Then a hypersonic missile company appeared next door.

“We’ve been through so much already, and now we have to leave. The scariest thing is not knowing anything,” she says.

A hypersonic weapons factory next to hundreds of homes

Castellion, a startup founded in November 2022 by three former SpaceX executives, is building Project Ranger. The company describes it as the “largest dedicated hypersonic manufacturing production facility” in the United States. Construction is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Some of the locations selected for the company’s megacampus are more than 1,000 yards from approximately 450 properties in Rio Rancho Estates, including Schultz’s home. If explosive chemicals stored at the facility were to ignite, those homes would be squarely within the danger zone.

A year after Castellion began its relationship with New Mexico, the company—which declined to be interviewed by WIRED for this story—still has not answered basic safety questions. An official risk assessment found that, in the event of a fire, the building would continue to burn and release hydrochloric acid gas into the air. Emails reviewed by WIRED between Castellion and Rio Rancho officials also show that the company negotiated fire safety standards after construction was already well underway.

“I live next door to where World War III is manufactured,” says local resident Laura Lundberg.

Castellion’s ambitious hypersonic missile plans

Castellion has become a prominent name among a new wave of defense technology startups. The company recently reached a valuation of $13 billion—more than quadrupling its Series B valuation of $2.8 billion from the previous year.

In just 18 months, the company won more than $500 million in U.S. military contracts and quickly secured a place among the “Arsenal of Freedom” suppliers.

The company touts its ability to produce hypersonic missiles—generally defined as missiles that travel at more than five times the speed of sound—at a lower cost than its competitors. The U.S. Army’s Dark Eagle is the most mature domestically produced hypersonic weapon, with an estimated cost of $41 million per missile, according to a 2023 Congressional Budget Office study. Castellion’s flagship product, the Blackbeard, is a solid rocket-propelled missile that was scheduled to sell for $384,000 each.