GMV has recently been awarded a contract by the Italian National Research Council (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Cnr) to provide the avionics subsystem for the Aviolancio program. The Aviolancio program aims to develop an air-launched micro-launcher to improve access to space for small platforms. As a first step, a suborbital vehicle will be integrated to validate most of the technologies and operations.

Functional tests to validate the propulsion system in flight were already carried out by the Cnr and the Italian Air Force (AMI) in 2022, when a sounding rocket with hybrid propulsion was successfully launched from Poligono Interforze (Test Range) of Salto di Quirra (PISQ), Sardinia, Italy, coordinated by the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (Cnr) and the Italian Airforce (AMI). The hybrid propulsion system was developed by Technology for Propulsion and Innovation (T4i) in collaboration with the University of Padua.

A captive test flight was also performed using an instrumented launcher mock-up and an F-104 Starfighter carrier from the Kennedy Space Center. This test was of great interest to obtain relevant in-flight data and to define preliminary procedures.

GMV was selected by Cnr at the end of an exhaustive tender process that started in October 2022, with the contract finally signed in July 2023. Cnr appreciated GMV’s experience in GNC, OBSW and avionics for launchers, matured in various relevant European programs such as VEGA, IXV, Space Rider, as well as the new commercial end-to-end development.

Cnr is the largest public research institution in Italy. Founded in 1923, its mission is to carry out research in its own institutes, to promote the internationalization of the national research system, to provide technologies and solutions for emerging public and private needs, to advise the government and other public bodies, and to contribute to the qualification of human resources. Cnr has over 8,000 employees, more than half of whom are researchers and technologists. Its total budget for 2022 was €1.4 billion.