RFA loses inaugural flight first stage, now what

In what was believed to be the final strand of tests before attempting its first orbital launch, Rocket Factory Augsburg suffered an anomaly during a hot fire test of its first stage and a loss of the vehicle. So what happens now for European launch?

The company announced in a statement on social media about the anomaly and shared that the vehicle was loss but the launch pad was saved. This test came just weeks from what was expected to be the rocket’s inaugural flight and the United Kingdom’s first vertical launch, now that is all on hold.

The failed test was believed to have taken place during a hot firing of all nine engines. Although the company did not state how many engines where used during Monday’s test. In previous weeks the company shared it successfully conducted individual hot fires of up to four Helix engines on the first stage. The CEO of OHB, the majority owner of RFA, stated the launch was expected to take place in a “matter of weeks.”

Video of the test by the BBC shows a start up of the rocket stage’s engines shortly followed by an explosion. After the explosion the test looked to have aborted but a fire continued, likely fueled by leaking propellent from the rocket. The incident ended with the stage collapsing off the launch pad, sparking one final explosion.

“We are now working closely with SaxaVord Spaceport and the authorities to gather data and info to eventually resolve what happened,” RFA said in a statement. “Our goal is to return to regular operations as soon as possible.”

This set back puts RFA’s chance of being the first in a group of new European launch startups to attempt an orbital flight on hold. Until Monday’s anomaly, RFA was the leader of the pack to conduct its launch at the SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland, up north on the Shetland Islands.

Europe is in a desperate need of a competitive commercial launch market as it still can only rely on Arianespace for flights to space. Its vehicles, currently subsidized by ESA‘s member states, are still more expensive than options across the pond in the US.

The next leader for the next European launcher could be Isar Aerospace with its Spectrum rocket. It stated earlier in the year of a possible summer 2024 launch, however no new information has come from the company.

The other leader could be PLD Space, building a launch site over at French Guiana, it has already attempted some sub-orbital launches out of Spain. Its Miura 5 rocket claims to be able to lift over 1,000 KG of payload to equatorial LEO, similar to Isar’s rocket.

Just like SpaceX‘s troubles with Starship and its early issues with Falcon 1, early failures do not always mean a failed company. How a company comes back from adversity to continue pushing towards their goal will be the factor in RFA’s success.

Two opposite examples are Rocket Lab and Astra Space. The Electron rocket has had a rather troubled lifetime, however the company has always bounced back hard and made the most of its mistakes. Astra on the other hand, seemingly doubled down on its less than proven designed until it was forced to move to a larger, more resilient system. While it still exists, just off public exchanges, it is a shell of its once self.