The European Space Agency (ESA) disclosed that a full-scale test model of the Space Rider vehicle crashed during a drop test on 6 October. The incident occurred over a military range in Sardinia, Italy, after the vehicle was released from a helicopter at an altitude of approximately three kilometers.
According to Géraldine Naja, Director of Space Transportation at ESA, the initial drogue parachute deployed as intended. However, the subsequent parafoil detached from the mock-up during deployment. This failure prevented a controlled landing and caused the test model to impact the ground.
ESA has recovered the remnants of the test model and established an investigation board to determine the cause of the detachment. While investigators have not yet identified the specific reason for the failure, the agency confirmed that previous qualification campaigns had successfully tested individual landing system elements.
Despite the crash, ESA does not expect the incident to delay the overall development of the Space Rider program. The agency stated that the remaining qualification activities are not on the critical path, allowing development to proceed during the investigation. The schedule will be reviewed once the board completes its work.
Space Rider is designed as Europe’s first reusable uncrewed orbital spacecraft for low Earth orbit missions. ESA maintains its target for the inaugural flight of the vehicle, which is scheduled for the first half of 2028 aboard a Vega C rocket.
