Isar Aerospace to Expand Testing Facilities as It Prepares for Next Spectrum Flight
•February 4, 2026
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Why It Matters
The new testing capability accelerates Isar’s production cadence and reliability validation, positioning the firm as a scalable European launch provider in a rapidly growing market.
Key Takeaways
- •New Esrange facility will test 30+ Aquila engines monthly.
- •Enables full stage acceptance testing for Spectrum rockets.
- •Second Spectrum flight targeted for 19 March after valve delay.
- •Munich plant aims >30 rockets per year production capacity.
- •Funding exceeds €550 million, supporting rapid scaling.
Pulse Analysis
Isar Aerospace’s decision to expand testing infrastructure at Esrange reflects a broader trend among European launch firms to internalise critical validation steps. By adding a dedicated acceptance test facility, Isar can run high‑frequency engine hot‑fires and integrated stage checks without relying on external resources. This not only shortens the turnaround between test campaigns but also improves data fidelity, essential for refining the Aquila engine’s performance envelope and reducing the risk of repeat failures like the inaugural Spectrum crash.
The timing of the expansion aligns with the upcoming second Spectrum flight, now pushed to a March window after a pressurisation valve anomaly forced a January postponement. With the ability to certify over 30 engines monthly, Isar can replace faulty units swiftly, ensuring that the flight schedule remains resilient against component setbacks. Moreover, full stage acceptance testing at the same site enables end‑to‑end verification of propulsion, avionics, and structural interfaces, bolstering confidence among prospective commercial customers seeking reliable low‑Earth‑orbit access.
Beyond testing, Isar’s parallel investment in a 40,000‑square‑metre Munich manufacturing hub underscores its ambition to achieve a production rate exceeding 30 rockets per year. Backed by more than €550 million in funding, the company is poised to compete with established players such as Arianespace and emerging newcomers like Rocket Factory Augsburg. The combined boost in test capacity and manufacturing throughput positions Isar to capture a larger share of the burgeoning small‑sat launch market, driving European launch independence and encouraging further private‑sector investment in space infrastructure.
Isar Aerospace to Expand Testing Facilities as it Prepares for Next Spectrum Flight
Credit: Isar Aerospace
German rocket builder Isar Aerospace has announced plans to expand its testing facilities at the Esrange Space Center in Sweden. The announcement comes as the company prepares for the second flight of its Spectrum rocket, currently expected no earlier than 19 March.
Isar Aerospace was founded in 2018 and is developing a 28-metre-tall rocket designed to deliver up to 1,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit. The company is conducting the rocket’s initial flights from Andøya Spaceport in Norway and has also secured a slot at the new multi-user commercial launch facility being developed by CNES at the Guiana Space Centre. To date, the company has raised over €400 million, excluding the €150 million secured through a convertible bond from Miami-based Eldridge Industries.
On 4 February, Isar Aerospace announced plans to expand its testing facilities at Esrange Space Center, located in northern Sweden near Kiruna. According to a press release, the new “purpose-built acceptance test facility” will enable the company to test more than 30 of its Aquila rocket engines per month. It will also allow for fully integrated stage acceptance testing.
“With our second test facility at Esrange, we are unlocking new capabilities and accelerating our progress. The expanded site will allow us to test and qualify more engines and stages than ever before, supporting our ambition to make space access truly scalable.”
Isar Aerospace declined to comment on the construction timeline for the new facility, including when work would begin or be completed. The company did confirm, however, that the new facility would operate alongside its existing testing infrastructure at Esrange.
Managed by SSC Space, the Esrange Space Center currently has two vertical test stands, known as VTS-1 and VTS-2. The first is utilized by Rocket Factory Augsburg to test its Helix engines, which power both the first and second stages of the company’s RFA ONE rocket. VTS-2 is assigned to Isar Aerospace for testing the company’s Aquila rocket engines, which the company has utilized since 2019.
In addition to its testing facilities, the space center has hosted suborbital rocket launches since the 1960s. In January 2023, SSC Space inaugurated a new orbital launch facility. While the new facility has yet to host a launch, US-based launch provider Firefly Aerospace and South Korean launch provider Perigee Aerospace have both signed agreements to launch their respective rockets from the facility.
Onward and Upward
Isar Aerospace launched an inaugural flight of its Spectrum rocket in March 2025, with the flight ultimately ending with the rocket crashing into the Norwegian Sea less than a minute after lifting off.
In December 2025, the company announced it had successfully completed hot-fire tests of both rocket stages for its second flight and was preparing to move forward with a launch in late January 2026. However, during preparations for the launch on 21 January, the company encountered a “pressurization valve issue,” forcing it to push the flight to March.
According to Isar Aerospace CEO Daniel Metzler, the company’s goal for its second flight is to “demonstrate real progress.”
“Our goal with this mission is to demonstrate real progress, and to achieve that, we will once again push our systems to their limits,” said Metzler. “We are ready to proceed within the next available launch window.”
In addition to preparing for the rocket’s second flight, Isar Aerospace announced on 16 January that the rockets for flights three to seven were already in production. To support the ramp-up of its production capacity, the company is opening a new 40,000-square-metre manufacturing facility near Munich. According to the company’s 4 February update, the facility is “nearing completion, with interior fit-out works underway.” Once complete, the facility will have the capacity to produce more than 30 Spectrum rockets per year.
The post Isar Aerospace to Expand Testing Facilities as it Prepares for Next Spectrum Flight appeared first on European Spaceflight.
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