For decades, Europe depended on a small number of launch options it did not fully control. State-backed launches from French Guiana provided limited flexibility, and Europe's deep reliance on Russian launch services ended abruptly in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Today, Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket launches infrequently, and sole dependence on US providers is not a viable long-term strategy for a continent that has made strategic autonomy a political priority. 

Space is not an abstract concern. It underpins GPS navigation, secure communications, weather forecasting, climate monitoring, and an expanding range of defense and intelligence capabilities. For Europe to maintain influence in these domains, it needs assured, sovereign access to orbit. 

"As Europeans, we need to work on our own security infrastructure, and space is absolutely paramount for that," says Fabian Gruner, partner at HV, which first invested in Isar Aerospace at its Series B round in 2020. "It's the common denominator between all security technologies."

Isar Aerospace designs and manufactures Spectrum almost entirely in-house, including its engines and around 90% of all components, allowing it to test and iterate fast. Spectrum is a two-stage orbital launch vehicle, 28 meters tall, with a diameter of 2 meters and a mass of 60 metric tons. It is designed to carry payloads of up to 1,000 kg into low Earth orbit. 

The company has opened a 40,000 m2 production facility near Munich, where rockets three through seven are already in production, with a target capacity of up to 40 vehicles per year.