Astra, a spacecraft engine manufacturer, and small rocket builder, has laid off 25% of its workforce and reallocated engineers and manufacturing staff to focus on spacecraft production.

The company is shifting engineers from Rocket 4 development to the Astra Spacecraft Engine production. The restructuring will delay Rocket 4's progress, impacting the company's ability to conduct paid commercial launches in the future.

Astra has received 278 orders for the Astra Spacecraft Engine but has generated little revenue from them so far. The lack of revenue has contributed to cash burn and a lower-than-expected cash position.

Analyst QuickTake : In July, Astra announced plans to sell up to USD 65 million in stock and has secured a USD 12.5 million loan to address working capital needs. Layoffs have been a common occurrence in the space industry due to financial struggles and a challenging investment climate. Other space industry companies that have announced layoffs recently include Benchmark Space Systems and Virgin Orbit .