Airbus Safran Launchers, the joint-venture created at the initiative of aerospace giants Airbus and Safran groups in order to reorganise the European rocket launch sector, is now to be known as ArianeGroup. The change in corporate name will be effective as of July 1st.

The name ArianeGroup is accompanied by a new logo and a brand architecture which covers all the subsidiaries controlled by the group: Arianespace, APP, Cilas, Eurockot, Nucletudes, Pyroalliance and Sodern. ArianeGroup and its subsidiaries, will present themselves under their new identity at the Paris Air Show from June 19th to 25th.

This change in identity is the logical next step following the decision of the ESA Member States at the Ministerial Conference in Luxembourg on December 2nd 2014, to create a new family of European launchers around Ariane 6 and to give greater responsibility to the industry under a new governance system. Just over two years after its creation by the Airbus and Safran groups in January, 2015, and less than one year after finalisation on July 1st 2016, the new company has reorganised the European launchers sector by redefining and implementing an efficient and optimised industrial organisation.

But there are challenges ahead for the newly-named outfit, not least the design and build of its ‘next generation’ rocket, Ariane 6, which is due for a test flight in 2020. Ariane 6 will be a reusable rocket, and following on the heels of the acknowledged success of arch-rivals SpaceX.

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