Orbex is not in prime position …Those companies were selected in July on the basis of technical and business maturity, and could receive up to 169 million euros each. They were: Isar Aerospace, MayaSpace, Orbex, PLD Space, and Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA). Isar, MySpace, PLD Space and RFA each received at least 169 million euros, while Orbex received only 34.9 million euros. The UK did not allocate 112.3 million euros, a move that surprised many industry observers. A UK Space Agency spokesperson said, “We are working with a range of partners to ensure that this funding meets our requirements for assured access to space and benefits UK taxpayers.” This wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of the UK-based launch company. (Submitted by EllPeaTea)
Europe has taken a tentative step towards crewed launchesThe European Space Agency has published a call for tenders to develop launch abort systems for future crewed launch capability, European Spaceflight reports, This system would be used in the event of an emergency, either on the launch pad or during the initial stages of flight,
Looking beyond the ISS …The new call is part of the European agency’s post-ISS low-Earth orbit strategy. The material explains that this strategy includes the development of an end-to-end European crewed flight solution. In addition to developing crew launch capabilities, the agency’s post-ISS strategy also includes options for low-Earth orbit infrastructure. These options include partnering with a commercial space station or building a European station. (Submitted by EllPeaTea)
After Russian launch incident, NASA brings forward Dragon launchWith a key Russian launch pad out of service, NASA is accelerating the launch of two Cargo Dragon spacecraft to ensure astronauts on the International Space Station have all the supplies they need next year, The next Dragon resupply mission, CRS-34, is being moved up a month to May, from June 2026, according to the space agency’s internal schedule, And then the next Dragon supply mission, CRS-35, has been moved up three months, from November to August,
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