German aerospace startup HyImpulse has signed a launch agreement with SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland to carry out the next flight of its SR75 suborbital rocket as Europe continues its slow push to launch from its own soil.
The flight is pencilled in for later this year. It will be the second outing for the SR75, but the first time HyImpulse has attempted a launch from Europe. Its debut mission, carried out from Koonibba in Australia, saw the vehicle complete a stable flight and put its hybrid propulsion system, using paraffin-based solid fuel and liquid oxygen, through its paces.
Under the deal, SaxaVord will handle the launch infrastructure and operational support, with the Shetland site being lined up as part of a broader European network of launch locations. The move comes as governments across Europe place greater emphasis on reducing reliance on non-European launch providers and strengthening domestic capabilities in an increasingly contested space domain.
Dr Christian Schmierer, co-founder and CEO of HyImpulse, said: “The successful first lift-off of SR75 marked an important milestone. Establishing launch operations in Europe is the next step in our roadmap and supports the continued development of sovereign launch capabilities.”
Suborbital vehicles like the SR75 are usually flown for microgravity research, atmospheric testing, and early payload trials before orbital missions, but they are increasingly being pulled into the wider defence and security mix.
Space-based systems now play a central role in communications, navigation, intelligence, and surveillance, placing greater strategic weight on assured and responsive launch capacity.
For the UK, the agreement adds momentum to efforts to establish itself as a northern European launch hub, with SaxaVord among a small number of licensed spaceports aiming to support vertical launches. Scott Hammond, CEO of SaxaVord Spaceport, described the deal as “the culmination of our long-standing partnership with HyImpulse” and said it “further strengthens SaxaVord’s position at the vanguard of UK vertical space launch”.
HyImpulse already has a foothold in the UK, including operations in Glasgow, and is looking to grow that presence as part of a wider European setup covering testing, engineering and launch. Schmierer told Resilience Media the SaxaVord mission is intended to build on that, while also feeding into efforts to develop end-to-end space capability in the UK.
The launch agreement follows the recent closure of a €45 million Series A funding round, backed by a combination of private investment and German and European public funding programmes and led by Campus Founders.
Schmierer told Resilience Media that the investment is being used to advance its hybrid propulsion technology, expand testing and launch capabilities, and “progress towards regular launch operations” as it moves beyond initial demonstration flights.
The mission may be suborbital, but it points to a broader shift in how Europe is approaching access to space, with smaller and more flexible launch systems being positioned as part of a wider, more distributed setup.
