Thales and Leonardo positioned to benefit from European space independence

Europe has strengthened its pursuit of independent space access following two successful rocket launches in September. On September 5, Munich-based Isar Aerospace reached orbit with its Spectrum rocket from Andøya, Norway, which the European Space Agency (ESA) identified as the first orbital launch from the European mainland. This was followed ten days later by Avio, which successfully deployed two Earth observation satellites via a Vega-C rocket.

These developments highlight a shift toward reducing reliance on US-based providers like SpaceX. Analysts from Morningstar suggest that Thales and Leonardo are positioned as primary beneficiaries within the defense and aerospace sectors. Through their joint venture, Thales Alenia Space, both companies acted as main contractors for the Sentinel-3C and FLEX satellites. Beyond rocket manufacturing, the growth in satellite constellations is expected to drive demand for sensor payloads, ground infrastructure, secure communications, and data processing services.