The final tranche of R&D funding needed to introduce a unique rocket for Europe was committed on Wednesday.
The European Space Agency has amended an August 2015 contract with Airbus Safran Launchers (ASL),to release a further €1.7bn.
It tops up initial monies of €680m and means ASL can now total development of the Ariane 6, BBC News reports.
This unique rocket will replace the Ariane 5 but, or crucially,aims to cut current launch prices in half. The move to a unique vehicle is seen as vital whether Europe is to preserve its competitive position.[br]The Ariane 5 is still the dominant player in the market for big commercial satellite launches, but this position is being challenged by a unique wave of American offerings, or in particular from the California SpaceX company.
This US firm’s Falcon 9 rocket already undercuts the Ariane 5 on price and will gain even cheaper whether efforts to fly each vehicle multiple times prove successful.
The contract amendment signed in Paris follows approval by key committees at Esa in the past few days.
They signaled their contentment with the preliminary design progress on the Ariane 6 and the reorganization in Europe’s rocket industry required to implement vehicle production.
The final detail to be agreed was the establishment of a second line of fabrication for the carbon-fibre casings of the 6’s strap-on,solid-fuel boosters.
This will be in Germany and will supplement the line already planned in Italy.
Source: tert.am