LEAP Space 3D-Prints Serrano Rocket Engine for Bighorn Launch Vehicle

One engine, fewer parts

Leap Space has revealed the Serrano, a rocket engine built primarily through metal additive manufacturing. The engine will power the company's Bighorn launch vehicle, a small-lift rocket aimed at the growing small satellite market.

Traditional rocket engines require hundreds of machined and welded components. The Serrano consolidates many of those parts into a single printed structure. Internal cooling channels run through the combustion chamber in geometries that would be difficult or impossible to machine conventionally.

Why small launch providers are betting on 3D printing

The commercial launch market has tightened over the past two years. Providers that cannot control production costs are struggling to secure launch slots. Additive manufacturing addresses that pressure directly: fewer suppliers, less material waste, and faster iteration between design and test.

Leap Space is not alone in this approach. Relativity Space has built entire rockets around 3D printing. SpaceX uses printed components in its Raptor engines. Rocket Lab has integrated printed parts into its Electron and Neutron programs. The difference with Serrano is scale. Leap Space is targeting a lower-cost, high-cadence smallsat launcher, where every dollar saved per engine compounds across a fleet of frequent flights.

What to watch next

The Serrano engine still needs to complete hot-fire tests before it flies. Leap Space has not announced a target date for the first Bighorn launch. If the engine performs as advertised, it could become a benchmark for how small launch companies use additive manufacturing to compete with larger players.

The broader signal is that metal 3D printing is moving from prototyping to flight hardware faster than many expected. The companies that can close the gap between design and test stand will likely define the next phase of commercial space access.