European launch service company Isar Aerospace and U.S.-based Spaceflight, the leading global launch service provider, have announced they have signed a multi-launch services agreement. Under the agreement, Spaceflight secured one dedicated launch in 2026 to a sun-synchronous orbit taking off from Andya, Norway, and an option to add an additional dedicated launch to occur in 2025.
“We’ve seen an increased demand for flexible and affordable launch options around the globe, but especially for our European-based customers,” says Curt Blake, CEO and president of Spaceflight. “We’re very much looking forward to working with Isar Aerospace to help us meet that growing need." "They have been successful in securing launch infrastructure and have made significant technological developments over recent years, and we welcome them into our launch vehicle portfolio.”
Spaceflight has more than a decade of launch and in-space transportation services expertise, successfully delivering more than 450 spacecraft across 55 launches, including both rideshare and dedicated launches. The company provides a host of launch and mission management services, from security capacity to comprehensive integration and logistics services. In addition, the company executed the launch of five next-generation Sherpa orbital transfer vehicles, which successfully carried more than 50 customer payloads, including cubesats, microsats, and hosted payloads, to their desired orbits.
The agreement underlines the trust and growing global interest in Isar Aerospace’s flexible launch service solutions as the company expands into the U.S. market. Spectrum, Isar Aerospace’s completely in-house developed two-stage launch vehicle, can deliver up to 1,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit (LEO) and up to 700 kilograms to sun-synchronous orbit (SSO). The vehicle design and testing are progressing well, and the company is working towards the first test flight of Spectrum, which is planned for 2023. Since its founding in 2018, Isar Aerospace has raised private funding of more than $180 million and attracted both international commercial and institutional customers.
“We thank Spaceflight for the confidence it has placed in Isar Aerospace’s team and are excited to welcome Spaceflight customers on board Spectrum’s flights! By adding the first U.S.-based company to our international client roster, we clearly see the growing market need for flexible space access and international alternatives. "Across the globe, a growing number of vital technologies are dependent on easy access to space, and private launch services like Isar Aerospace offer the solution,” says Stella Guillen, chief commercial officer at Isar Aerospace.
Private commercial launch services stemming from Europe not only create a real alternative in the current international market environment but become an essential part of meeting the growing international demand in the future.
Click here to learn more about Spaceflight's Sherpa orbital transfer vehicles.
