Isar Aerospace lands €270M, Healey quits over UK DIP shortfall, Helsing reveals CA-1EA at ILA Berlin
European launch player Isar Aerospace closed a €270 million Series D at a roughly €2 billion post-money on 9 June, while UK Defence Secretary John Healey resigned on 11 June over a Defence Investment Plan he said falls £13 billion short of MoD needs. At ILA Berlin, Helsing unveiled the CA-1EA electronic-attack drone and the EU signed a joint declaration with five member states on an In-Space Operations and Services pilot. Mercedes-Benz also tied up with Munich counter-drone startup Tytan Technologies, in a week where defence-industrial deal flow ran hot from Berlin to Brussels.
Isar Aerospace closes €270M Series D at circa €2B post-money, targets 40 Spectrum vehicles a year
Munich-based Isar Aerospace announced on 9 June it had closed a €270 million (about $312 million) Series D, with sources close to the company putting the post-money valuation at around €2 billion. New investors Island Green Capital and Molten Ventures joined existing backers HV Capital, Lakestar and UVC Partners, with co-investor KfW Capital. Isar said proceeds will scale production of its Spectrum small launch vehicle at the Munich-area factory toward a target rate of 40 vehicles per year, and support a launch between 15 and 21 June carrying five cubesats and a hosted payload as a qualification mission. The round lands in the same week ICEYE booked a €1 billion raise at a €10 billion valuation, confirming late-stage European space capital is concentrating into a handful of sovereign-relevant platforms. For founders: dual-use launch, ISR and onboard compute are now the categories that clear €100M-plus tickets; sub-scale plays should plan to consolidate or specialise hard.
Source: Isar Aerospace raises 270 million euros for global launch expansion, SpaceNews
Market
European Commission signs ISOS joint declaration with five states on 10 June for in-orbit servicing pilot
On 10 June at ILA Berlin, the European Commission signed a joint declaration with Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and Norway in support of an In-Space Operations and Services (ISOS) pilot mission, framed as a step toward a European in-orbit service infrastructure. The signature sits alongside ESA's same-day award to Thales Alenia Space, with Airbus Defence and Space Germany supplying core radar instruments, for two next-generation Copernicus Sentinel-1 NG satellites. ISOS aligns with broader EU instruments now in execution: a €1 billion EDF 2026 work programme across 31 topics open until 29 September, the €1.5 billion EDIP envelope for 2026 to 2027 including €300 million for the Ukraine Support Instrument, and the €115 million AGILE pilot for disruptive defence tech aimed at startups. For founders: in-orbit servicing, refuelling, debris removal and rendezvous-and-proximity-operations now have a named EU pilot to anchor reference customers; align roadmaps to ISOS milestones and EDF call topics before the September deadline.
Source: Signature of ISOS' Joint Declaration, Defence Industry and Space, European Commission
Previous issues
8 June 2026
MICA NG goes supersonic, NATO Forward Land Forces Finland stands up, SIPRI flags nuclear drift, Kongsberg locks in Nansen frigates
France and MBDA cleared a supersonic firing milestone for the MICA NG on 1 June, opening the next phase of Rafale F4 integration. NATO formally stood up Forward Land Forces Finland with a Swedish battlegroup, extending the eFP model to the Alliance's longest new border. SIPRI's 2026 Yearbook warned of renewed reliance on nuclear arsenals, reshaping the regulatory backdrop for dual-use exports. Kongsberg and Navantia inked a long-term sustainment deal for Norway's Nansen-class frigates, while ESA's Biomass mission delivered its first operational forest carbon data.
1 June 2026
Saab Gripen deal lands in Kyiv, Poland banks first SAFE tranche, defence stocks cool, EUDIS accelerator shuts intake
Sweden and Ukraine announced a 36-aircraft Gripen package on 28 May, with Ukraine earmarking 2.5 billion euros from the EU loan to buy up to 20 new E/F jets. Poland received the first SAFE disbursement of 6.6 billion euros on 29 May, the opening tranche of a 43.7 billion euro allocation. European defence stocks plateaued in 2026 after a blockbuster 2025, with the Stoxx Aerospace and Defence index down 1.2% YTD. The EUDIS Business Accelerator closed its spring intake on 30 May offering 120,000 euro vouchers, while ESA's Smile space-weather mission lifted off on Vega-C on 19 May.
25 May 2026
EU tightens FDI screening, ICEYE lands €300M RCF, UK fires up Borealis, Sweden negotiates French frigates
MEPs approved on 19 May the revised Foreign Investment Screening Regulation covering defence, dual-use goods and critical technologies, with rules applying from 2027 after Council adoption. Finnish SAR operator ICEYE originated a €300 million three-year revolving credit facility on 21 May, signalling a shift from equity to syndicated bank debt to back sovereign contracts. The UK declared its Borealis space domain awareness software operational on 22 May, six months ahead of schedule, under a £65 million CGI contract. Sweden opened negotiations with France for four FDI-derived frigates, and ESA launched its Smile space weather mission aboard Vega-C on 19 May.