Dassault Aviation has selected Spanish propulsion company Arkadia Space to develop and supply the complete propulsion system for the VORTEX-D, the subscale demonstrator of its planned reusable European spaceplane.
The contract, announced by Arkadia Space on April 21, 2026, covers a full reaction control system built around the company’s 250-newton ARIEL monopropellant thrusters, along with associated propellant tanks and control electronics.
The system will handle precision maneuvering during the higher-altitude phases of the mission, where positional accuracy and reliability become critical for hypersonic re-entry.
ARIEL thruster gains second European reusable launch customer
ARIEL was developed by Arkadia Space starting in mid-2023 under the European Space Agency’s Future Launchers Preparatory Programme. The thruster relies on high-test hydrogen peroxide rather than the hydrazine-based propellants traditionally used in spacecraft propulsion, which Arkadia markets as a “green” alternative offering improved mission safety and ground handling.
The Dassault contract is the second commercial selection for the 250N ARIEL in less than two years. In February 2025, MaiaSpace, the small launcher subsidiary of Arianespace, chose the same thruster for the reaction control system of its partially reusable rocket, placing a Spanish startup at the propulsion core of two of Europe’s higher-profile reusable space transportation efforts.
“This contract represents a major milestone for our team,” Francho García, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Arkadia Space, said in the company’s announcement. “Being selected by a company like Dassault Aviation for such a strategic and ambitious program is a strong validation of Arkadia as a reliable propulsion partner.”
Dassault Aviation had not publicly commented on the contract at the time of writing.
VORTEX program expands across France, Germany and Spain
VORTEX, short for Véhicule Orbital Réutilisable de Transport et d’EXploration, was unveiled by Dassault at the 2025 Paris Air Show, backed by an initial 30 million euros (around 34.1 million US dollars) from the French Direction générale de l’armement and the Centre national d’études spatiales.
Dassault is following a four-step roadmap: VORTEX-D is the 1:3-scale demonstrator, intended to reduce risk on the aerodynamic configuration during hypersonic re-entry and qualify flight controls and thermal protection.
It would be followed by VORTEX-S, a 2:3-scale “Smart Free Flyer”; VORTEX-C, a full-scale cargo variant; and VORTEX-M, a crewed configuration. Maiden flight of VORTEX-D is targeted for 2028.
The Arkadia contract is the latest in a string of partnerships announced since the program launched. In November 2025, Dassault signed a cooperation agreement with German satellite builder OHB for exoatmospheric systems expertise and a memorandum of understanding with Space Cargo Unlimited to integrate its BentoBox autonomous payload platform aboard future operational variants.
The selection adds Spanish industry to a program now spanning France, Germany, and Spain under a single industrial lead, an arrangement Dassault chief executive officer Éric Trappier has consistently held up as the cooperative model he would prefer for the troubled FCAS program.
