And as SpaceX aggressively sends its Starlink mega-constellation into space, Europe’s hopes are fading. They simply can’t build hundreds of satellites a year. And if they were able to build them they couldn’t launch them.
The ESA is urging its partners to develop a plan to compete. The group expected the completion of the Ariane 6 and Vega-C rockets in the next 18 months. The member states of the ESA are asking for a “technological and industrial” response plan to the rising fortunes of SpaceX.
