The fifth ESA Future Space Transportation (FLPP) Autumn Session brought Europe’s space transportation community together at the Salons de L’Aveyron in Paris on Wednesday 14 October—and proved a resounding success. ESA, industry, investors and Member State delegates gathered to discuss progress, exchange ideas and build the partnerships that will shape Europe’s future in space.
More than 260 people participated onsite, filling the venue and creating a vibrant atmosphere throughout the day and with almost 200 participants joining online, this was the largest FLPP Autumn Session to date. Beyond the presentations and programme updates, participants consistently highlighted the event’s greatest value: the opportunity to network, connect across organisations and countries, and turn conversations into new cooperation.
Pier Domenico Resta, Head of Future Space Transportation, opened events by celebrating another successful year, adding “Europe needs to be able to act independently in space and access to space is the backbone of everything, driving the need for disruptive technologies.”
Participants shared their expectations of the Autumn session and curiosity, innovation and community emerged as the clear winners – and they were not disappointed, with inspirational presentations from industry and the FLPP team throughout the afternoon.
Working together – ESA Future Space Transportation and industry
At the heart of the day was a simple message: Europe’s future in space will be built together. Across the ESA Space Transportation Services directorate (STS), helping industry develop and commercialise new technologies is fundamental and is delivered through various initiatives such as BOOST! and FLPP. Working in partnership with ESA opens doors to collaboration, opportunities and funding, and Johanna Pardo, from German company Isar Aerospace explained how support from ESA’s BOOST! programme enabled ISAR to secure investment and get their launch vehicle, Spectrum, off the ground and into orbit.
Jorgen Bru, Commercial Services Manager, ESA agreed, “This is the start of the journey, an inspiration, a huge achievement…from an ESA perspective, this is an illustration of how we can support the commercial space industry sector: ESA is a partner, not only a customer and we facilitate entrance into the ecosystem.”
The spirit of collaboration and cooperation underpins all FLPP initiatives, and the importance of this willingness to be open to new ideas and partnerships was a constant theme of the day. Souad Tenfiche-Ancelle, CEO, Link Innovations/Co-President, La French Tech India, captured it through a striking comparison with biology: a membrane knows what to protect, it is selective about what it lets in, and enables active two-way exchange. The European Space community, she argued, needs membranes rather than walls.
FLPP achievements and upcoming opportunities
Six months after the FLPP Spring Session, progress was already visible. The message from the team was unmistakable: ESA Future Space Transportation is not simply planning for the future — it is making it happen, and at speed.
Frédéric Jousset, Themis and Reusabiity Manager in FLPP, set out the ambition behind that momentum: “We cannot do much in space if we do not have adequate access to space. We need reliable, efficient, affordable, flexible and autonomous access. Reusability is needed for this capacity and is what we are working on. We are trying to accelerate as fast as we can and for this, we rely on the ecosystem. This is why we are derisking the technologies with the aim of achieving future mid to heavy launch systems.”
Traditional procurement process is supported by calls for ideas, pitch days, invitations to tender, and hackathons. These are not isolated steps: together, they give Europe’s space community a voice in shaping future roadmaps and developing new technologies. The energy in the networking breaks made clear how strongly the audience values this inclusive approach.
Luis Escudero, Technology Disruptors Manager, FIRST! FLPP, reiterated “We need to mature disruptive technologies to meet the needs of European space transportation primes, and at the same time we need to help our European technology providers to reach new commercial markets. Within FIRST! we have analysed over 600 ideas and 200 industry proposals involving 21 countries in the last 3 years, and this has resulted in 76 contracts.”
Then came another opportunity. Kate Underhill, managing the THRUST! initiative within FLPP, announced ESA will issue an Invitation to Tender (ITT) for THRUST!2 in mid-November. The call will seek proposals to manufacture and test critical engine sub-systems at full scale, representative of the final part that will ultimately fly. The aim is not only to mature staged-combustion engines, but to ensure that Europe can turn technology into operational capability. As Ms Underhill explained: “It is not enough for rockets to launch once. The goal is to consider industrialisation from the beginning of the engine maturation so that we can quickly get to series production of flight engines.”
Outcomes and awards
Project showcases allowed participants to see first-hand what FLPP supported partnerships area already delivering, while OCCAM Space, LIOS, Ariane Group, Hexcel & MT Aerospace shared their own journeys and praised the team’s support, commitment and enthusiasm.
And the next developments are already underway. Contracts were awarded for the FLPP FIRST! Simulation and Intelligence competitive call, the FIRST! Structures, Materials, Mechanisms and Processes competitive call, and also for InSPoC 4. The latter is the latest step towards the next generation of European in-space capabilities.
Yann Tincellin, InSPoC Manager at ESA, returned to the day’s defining idea: progress depends on removing barriers: “I believe we are taking down walls within the industry, across member states and the agency to unlock new markets so you can thrive and grow your business. There is a growing desire for In-Space operations and services, and we need European launchers for missions for science and exploration, and shared capabilities and interfaces underpin everything.”
As the day drew to a close, Agata Jozwicka-Perlant, Future Space Transportation System Manager, looked ahead to the opportunities still to come and left the community with a direct invitation: “We are waiting for your ideas.”
The final word, however, belong to the audience. Asked what they had gained from the event, participants converged on three themes: networking, collaboration and aspiration. Together, they captured both what FLPP has achieved and the ambition driving its next steps.
With new partnerships forming and fresh opportunities already emerging, the FLPP Autumn and Spring Sessions are highlights in the European Space community calendar. FLPP, part of ESA’s STS Directorate, is a vibrant and growing community – join us next year for the FLPP Spring Session 2027 in Paris on 21 April 2027 – save the date and see you next year!