ESA Awards RFA €2.7 Million for SaxaVord Launch

The European Space Agency has awarded Rocket Factory Augsburg a €2.7 million contract amendment. This co-funding will support the build-out of the company's launch and testing infrastructure at the SaxaVord spaceport in Scotland. According to ESA, RFA is expected to resume preparations for static fire tests of its first RFA ONE rocket soon.

The contract was announced on 23 September. It will finance the development of testing facilities at SaxaVord capable of hot-fire tests for individual Helix 1.0 rocket engines and fully integrated RFA ONE second stages. ESA stated the funding would also support additional, unspecified ground infrastructure at the spaceport.

Jorgen Bru, Commercial Services Manager and Technical Officer for ESA's Boost! Programme, explained the purpose. This co-funding focuses on capabilities that are essential for safe flight operations at the SaxaVord Spaceport for the first test flights and to strengthen the foundation for [the company’s] ramp-up, Bru said.

Funding and Programme Background

The money is provided by the UK Space Agency through ESA's Boost! Programme. This initiative aims to foster the development and commercialisation of European space transportation services. RFA has now secured more than €33 million in total Boost! Funding from Germany, Portugal, and the UK. The latest €2.7 million award appears to be an extension of a €3.6 million grant awarded in late 2023 for developing SaxaVord infrastructure to test RFA ONE first stages.

RFA's Path to Launch

RFA is working towards its second attempt at an inaugural flight for the RFA ONE rocket. The company suffered a setback in August 2024 when a static-fire test resulted in the loss of the original first stage intended for the mission. RFA returned to the launch pad with a replacement vehicle in July 2026. It announced that a fully integrated RFA ONE had been erected ahead of a planned static fire test.

After a week of testing, however, the company encountered an unspecified issue with the vehicle. It decided to destack the rocket for further investigation. Until the ESA announcement, RFA had provided no further updates on its progress towards returning the vehicle to the pad.

Next Steps and Testing

The 23 September ESA press release, while not coming directly from RFA, states that the static fire test is "coming soon." The agency provided no additional details on the timeline. The new funding is specifically earmarked for creating the essential testing capabilities needed for these initial flight campaigns at the Scottish site.