Reaction Engines - Administration

Reaction Engines, an Abingdon, Oxfordshire-based hypersonic aviation pioneer, entered administration on 31 October.

Sarah O’Toole, Peter Dickens, and Edward Williams of PwC were appointed joint administrators and said that the company had been pursuing opportunities to raise further funds to continue developing a hybrid rocket-jet engine. Unfortunately, these attempts were unsuccessful. 173 of the company's 208 staff have been made redundant.

The collapse may also cause problems for clients, including several Formula One racing teams which use the company’s innovative cooling technology in their engines supplied by Mercedes-Benz.