ArianeGroup and Beyond Gravity have signed a new contract for the operational phase of Ariane 6, supporting Ariane 6 operations. The agreement covers the supply of 27 payload fairings for the flight models 16 to 42 of Ariane 6. ArianeGroup, a French-German company in space technology, is the prime contractor for Ariane 6. Following the successful completion of its initial flights, ArianeGroup is currently increasing the Ariane 6 production rate.

Beyond Gravity, an international space supplier headquartered in Switzerland with 12 locations in six countries, has been producing payload fairings for every Ariane mission since the first flight of Ariane 1 in 1979. Beyond Gravity is also participating in the Ariane 6 program. Depending on the mission, the European heavy-launcher can be equipped with a short (14-meter) or long (20-meter) payload fairing. This allows Ariane 6 to adapt to a wide variety of payloads. Instead of maintaining a separate system for each mission type, a common technical platform covers the entire spectrum.

The new contract for the operational phase starts at the end of 2026 and marks the largest in the history of Beyond Gravity’s Swiss launch vehicle business. By producing 20 long and seven short payload fairings, the company is contributing to the industrial ramp-up of the Ariane 6 program and to the planned launch cadence of nine to ten missions per year.

Christophe Bruneau, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ArianeGroup, said: “We are thrilled to continue our fruitful collaboration with Beyond Gravity. The agreement underscores that cooperation is key to ensuring a competitive and autonomous European access to space. As the Ariane 6 ramp-up is in full swing, we now have long-term visibility on the supply of payload fairings for the operational phase of Europe’s heavy-launcher that has demonstrated its reliability and performance with eight successful flights since July 2024.”

Barbara Frei-Spreiter, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Beyond Gravity, said: “This record-breaking order marks an important milestone for Beyond Gravity and for Europe’s space industry as a whole. We are delighted to actively help shape the ramp-up of the Ariane 6 launch vehicle program by supplying key technologies and to continue our long-standing partnership with ArianeGroup and the ESA. With our ability to mass-produce highly complex launch vehicle structures to the highest quality standards, we are making a key contribution to the competitiveness of the European space industry.” 

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