Prometheus® engine mock-up
03.09.2024
For many of us, today was back to school day!
For MaiaSpace, this summer has been as busy as the Olympic Games, as teams have received a mock-up of the LOX/bio-methane Prometheus® engine, which equips both stages of the Maia launcher, in our facilities in Vernon, Normandy.
The mock-up engine has been mounted on our full-scale prototype of the upper stage, validating mechanical and fluidic connections, as well as integration procedures and tooling.
The prototype is currently back in the test zone with the teams about to fill up the tanks with liquid nitrogen for first wet rehearsals. Hot firing tests of the upper stage will follow in 2025.
Only two years after the creation of MaiaSpace, an operational milestone like this illustrates the company’s strategy of drawing on the excellence and expertise of the historic European space sector, starting with the acquisition at commercial conditions of the Prometheus® reusable engine from ArianeGroup. In 24 months, almost all sub-systems of the Maia launcher have been produced and tested thanks to our iterative “test & learn” approach and pragmatic industrial footprint, allowing to keep to our target of starting commercial exploitation in 2026.