European Spaceplane VORTEX Confirmed for Crewed Flight: 2031 Hinges on Heat Shield

Dassault Aviation and OHB announced at a Paris briefing that VORTEX will become a crewed vehicle with a prototype for crew by 2031. The key condition is successful hypersonic heat shield tests in 2028. The project was supported by Macron at the September International Space Summit.

• Crewed VORTEX prototype planned for 2031
• Hypersonic heat shield test scheduled for 2028
• Project supported by Macron at International Space Summit
• Developers are Dassault Aviation and OHB