Credit: IDS
The European Space Agency (ESA) has awarded a contract for the design of a reusable rocket stage recovery vessel to the Italian aerospace and defence systems company Ingegneria Dei Sistemi (IDS). The project is part of a broader contract awarded to the Italian rocket builder Avio for the development of a reusable rocket upper stage.
In late September, ESA awarded a €40 million contract to Avio for the design of a reusable rocket upper stage. The project scope encompasses preliminary design work, including system requirements and technological solutions, for both the launch system and the ground segment. According to the agency, the project has a number of potential applications, including as an evolution of Avio’s Vega family of rockets.
On 15 October, IDS announced that it had been awarded the contract to design the project’s recovery vessel, which falls under the systems ground segment. The company has subcontracted Italian naval systems consultancy Cetena and Norwegian shipbuilder Vard to assist with the project.
The Avio-led reusable rocket upper stage project is not the first ESA-funded reusable launch initiative in which IDS has participated. In December 2024, the company revealed that it had also been involved in the development of a recovery vessel for a “pathfinder activity” focused on designing a fully reusable rocket capable of delivering up to 60 tonnes to low Earth orbit.
In addition to working on the design of a reusable rocket upper stage, Avio has also received funding from the Italian government through its PNRR programme to design a reusable first stage. The company received €181.6 million for the development of two demonstrators as part of its Space Transportation System initiative. The project aims to validate the company’s next-generation methalox rocket engines and serve as a means to mature reusable rocket technologies, potentially paving the way for an evolution of the Vega family or the introduction of a new medium-lift launch system.