Count down to launch Vega, the Avio: “It ‘a historic turning point” – Adnkronos

Posted: 11/28/2015 14:05

  sixth flight for the European launcher Vega . The carrier, almost all based on Italian technology, will start next Wednesday, December 2 , at 05.00 am (Italian time) from the spaceport of Kourou in French Guyana . Vega will bring the satellite into orbit the European satellite Elisa Pathfinder, ESA’s first observatory dedicated to the study of gravitational waves, a scientific mission based on the theory of relativity of Einstein. But not only. It this launch “marks a historic shift Vega” underlines the CEO of Avio, Ranzo Julius, interviewed dall’Adnkronos.

  This launch of Vega , the last contract Verta (Vega Research Technology Accompainment fans) because the next flights will be of a commercial nature, marks a change of pace “because the space activity acquires Italian an additional thickness “, reinforcing” the excellence that already expressed both in the ground and in the pitchers’ remarks Ranzo, leading the joint venture (81% Finmeccanica Cinven 14% Top management 5%) by 2 October last year.

 And it’s Avio Group and realizes the Vega , in which the subsidiary ELV (30% owned by the Italian Space) is prime , to allow it to be present in the few countries in the world capable of producing a complete spacecraft. “The ability to make the prime contractor, that is driving the launch capability, and it means the possibility of access to space, it is a catalyst for growth” technological and economic Italian, comments Ranzo. Why, he notes, “Vega drags the opportunity to develop other skills that gradually are making it necessary” in space.

 Avio is focusing a lot on the Vega and the pitcher is growing. The ESA’s decision to use the same engine, the P120C, for both the Vega C, new generation of leading European launcher orbiting small loads, that for the future Ariane 6 , is a key decision, because, explains Ranzo, “is a testament to the fact that the technology developed for Vega is absolutely excellent.” The point of being “a cornerstone -spiega- to create a successor product of the Ariane 5, Ariane 6, since the new element of the next generation of these pitchers are our booster.”

 For this, Avio has just opened at the plant in Colleferro the yards in the new industrial plants that will be used to working launchers Ariane and Vega C 6, supporting an investment of 35 million euro by 2019, funds “partly private and partly public, as typical in our industry,” said the number one company. Vega, therefore, allows you to look “more optimism and pride to the development of the space industry and Italian Avio”.

 “But then -avverte Ranzo- we also put a lot of tenacity because we have to keep the conquered positions , positions that do not remain forever given the great international competition.” There are many people, admits the manger, that “envy us this position and would like to capture it. So now that we have won the leadership in launchers, we like Italy, at the institutional level, defend, promote and export it around the world in all its dimensions: from commercial relations with foreign countries “.

 The Vega , in fact, in his next seven flights will allow at least six different countries to access space . Countries like Vietnam, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Peru, Turkey. “Scenario that opens up possibilities for strategic relations to Italy, according to Ranzo. And,” more surprisingly, the CEO of -stresses Avio- in this squad there are also the United States. “The US” are certainly a country with no technological resources, yet one of the company Google, Skybox Imaging “, founded as Silicon Valley startup and specializes in the collection of images of the Earth from space, ” decided to put in orbit satellites using its own Vega “.

 Element indicates Ranzo, “quite extraordinary”. Not only. Vega “is a tool, not a means, not an end, but a means to accelerate the process of technological growth” Italian. It also in terms of the fight against international terrorism, the European launcher made in Italy, which leads in low orbit satellites also can realize high-definition images of the Earth, shows “a capacity that “can also be used for purposes of military and intelligence.”