I'm rooting for Ariane! They have been successful so far.
The European space industry’s gross output is growing faster than the US’s. From 2016-2019, US gross output decreased, while the Europeans experienced growth in gross output and employment.
https://twitter.com/lionnetpierre/status/1533552816291209217?s=46&t=EUNxRJ2QLFsizCjDnIafTw
@spaceflight, something must be going right for there to be better growth. The Ariane and Vega rockets take many European payloads.
For example, the Pléiades-Neo Airbus satellites were recently launched by a pair of Vega rockets, which cost less to launch than an F9. These were rideshare missions, too, so the cost savings were even greater. The satellites created value for Europe, and the launch segment helped enable that value creation.
The attached graph is from 1991 till 2021
Ariane 5 went into service in 2003, and the Vega rocket in 2012. It's no coincidence that output/jobs have increased so much starting in 2005.
My crystal ball says that Arianne will continue being an iconic part of the space industry 😉
mgnv
Spaceflight 🚀