Eurospace Position Paper “From pad to orbit: the need to sustain independent European access to space”

Autonomous access to space is a strategic prerequisite for Europe’s security, resilience, and global influence. Europe faces a systemic competitive disadvantage in the global launch market. Unlike its competitors, it lacks a strong, captive institutional market and relies heavily on commercial demand.

With only around 10% of the global launch market accessible to Europeanproviders, and significantly lower institutional launch volumes compared to the United States and China, the European space industry struggles to achieve the scale, cadence, and cost-efficiency required to remain competitive.

To address this imbalance, a fundamental shift in the way European access to space policy is designed is required. The proposed European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) and the inclusion of an access to space pillar represents a critical opportunity for the European Union to play a stronger role in securing autonomous access to space.

In its new Position Paper “From pad to orbit: the need to sustain independent European access to space”, available HERE, the European Space Industry, represented by Eurospace, provides recommendations for the evolution of European institutional demand to ensure European access to space through market-informed analysis and policy-driven actions.