French President Emmanuel Macron announced on 10 September 2026 at the International Space Summit in Paris that France will support Dassault Aviation’s VORTEX reusable spaceplane program. A statement from Dassault said an official Élysée document listing the summit’s announcements also confirms French support for VORTEX.
Dassault describes VORTEX as a family of reusable spaceplanes designed to operate in orbit and return to Earth for a conventional runway landing. The company envisages both civil and military uses, including cargo transport, autonomous orbital missions, in-orbit servicing and intervention, with crew transportation envisaged at a later stage.
Dassault acts as global architect and integrator, with development carried out in partnership with OHB. APCO Technologies, MT Aerospace, Sener, Sonaca and Space Cargo Unlimited have also joined the project, according to Dassault. CEO Éric Trappier said French backing should lead several countries, including Germany, to join the ambition for mastering mobility in space.
The VORTEX roadmap divides the program into four successive phases: VORTEX-D, a one-third-scale flight demonstrator; VORTEX-S, a two-thirds-scale ‘Smart Free Flyer’; VORTEX-C, a full-scale cargo vehicle; and VORTEX-M, a full-scale crewed version. VORTEX-D is intended to reduce risks associated with the vehicle’s configuration during hypersonic reentry and validate critical technologies.
The latest announcement follows a rapid increase in public backing. At the Paris Air Show on 20 June 2025, the French Ministry of Armed Forces and Dassault agreed to support VORTEX-D with €30 million over three years. On 9 April 2025, Trappier told the French National Assembly’s Defense Committee that France had no spaceplane and the concept attracted little interest.
Neither the Dassault statement nor the Élysée document specifies the amount, form or duration of the latest support, or whether fresh funding has been committed. Dassault also signed a Letter of Intent with the European Space Agency during the Paris Air Show to explore cooperation on orbital vehicles and a potential scaled-down suborbital VORTEX testbed.
