Photo: Isar Aerospace, Simon Fischer, Wingmen Media

Isar Aerospace’s first launch over the weekend was not successful, but it marked a milestone in European spaceflight as the first instance of a commercial launch taking off from continental Europe. Germany-based Isar Aerospace launched the first test of its Spectrum launch vehicle on March 30 from the Andøya Spaceport in Norway.

After a successful liftoff, the launch was terminated approximately 30 seconds into flight, and the vehicle fell into the sea in a controlled manner. Isar Aerospace confirmed post-launch that the launch pad remained intact. The company said it will now analyze the data and results it obtained from the first test flight to determine the root cause and iterate the systems of its Spectrum launch vehicle for future missions.

The company highlighted its milestone as the first European commercial space company to launch an orbital-class rocket from continental Europe — but the milestone of a successful orbital mission from continental Europe is still up for grabs.

“Our first test flight met all our expectations, achieving a great success. We had a clean liftoff, 30 seconds of flight and even got to validate our Flight Termination System. We demonstrated that we can not only design and build but also launch rockets,” Isar Aerospace CEO Daniel Metzler said in a statement.

“I could not be prouder of our entire team for working so hard over the past seven years to reach this important milestone. Today, we laid the foundation to cater to the rising global demand for flexible satellite launch services. Now it’s time to analyze all data, learn, iterate and be back on the launch pad as soon as possible,” Metzler added.

Launch vehicles for the second and third flight of Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum are already in production. Along the approach of full vertical integration, Isar Aerospace develops, produces and tests almost all components of its Spectrum launch vehicle in-house. The company said that in its new headquarters near Munich, Germany, it will be able to produce up to 40 Spectrum launch vehicles per year in the future.

Former SpaceX executive Bulent Altan, now chairman of Isar Aerospace, called the test a “major success” for the company in a statement. “This test flight met our expectations for a first launch with a completely clean slate design, in every way. As I have experienced before, it normally can take a few attempts to reach orbit, yet after today’s test flight, I am very confident that Isar Aerospace will be one of the fastest to do so,” Altan said.

One of Isar Aerospace’s launch rivals in Europe congratulated the company on its successful launch. Phil Chambers, CEO of Orbex, said in a statement, “Europe’s need for a thriving space sector is crucial if we want to compete on a global stage so every launch attempt is a step forward. This is a reminder that launching satellites into space is hard and requires dedication and innovation to drive success. We wish the Isar Aerospace Team well for their next mission.”