A giant, fully reusable rocket built almost entirely in one country is about to push Spain into the elite club of space powers.
PLD Space has presented the first complete unit of Miura 5, a powerful, reusable “100% made in Spain” orbital rocket that is planned to blast off in the first quarter of 2026 from the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana. This towering launcher weighs around 70 tonnes and stands as tall as an 11-storey building, making it a significant step up from Miura 1, the smaller suborbital rocket that already proved Spain’s capabilities with its first flight in 2023. And this is the part most people miss: Miura 5 is not just a bigger rocket, it is Spain’s ticket to independent access to space.
The specific unit unveiled is called Qualification Model 1 (QM1), and it has been assembled at PLD Space’s facilities in Elche (Alicante) in a remarkably short period of just two years. QM1 is not the rocket that will actually fly into orbit; instead, it is a full-scale test vehicle designed to put every subsystem through realistic, demanding trials before any mission carries payloads into space. The goal is clear and ambitious: by rigorously testing components such as the first and second stages under real-world conditions, the company wants to reduce in-flight risk as much as possible and ensure that the rocket is reliable long before its first official mission.
That first mission will itself be a test flight, carrying experimental payloads from space agencies and research institutions rather than commercial satellites. This kind of “qualification flight” is common in the space industry and serves as a high-stakes demonstration that the rocket’s systems actually perform as expected outside the lab. It is a crucial moment not only for PLD Space, but also for customers who are deciding whether to trust this new European launcher with their experiments and future satellites. But here’s where it gets controversial: in a crowded global launch market, some will ask whether another medium launcher is truly needed, or whether Europe is simply arriving late to a race already dominated by a few big players.
To prove Miura 5 can be safely controlled in an emergency, the rocket’s second stage will be subjected to a destruction test in the United States. In that test, engineers will validate the flight termination system (FTS), the safety mechanism that uses onboard explosive charges to deliberately destroy the rocket if something goes seriously wrong during ascent. Although it sounds extreme, this system is standard in launch operations worldwide because it protects people and infrastructure on the ground if the vehicle veers off course. That means Miura 5 must demonstrate not only that it can fly successfully, but also that it can be safely aborted if necessary.
While the second stage faces this destructive trial, the first stage has its own crucial exam: a full “wet dress rehearsal.” In practical terms, this is a complete fuelling and pressurisation test that simulates the countdown procedures as closely as possible without actually launching. During a wet dress rehearsal, teams load the rocket with propellants, pressurise the tanks, and run through all the sequences and scenarios that could arise during the fuelling phase. This test is essential for confirming that the rocket’s structure, plumbing, and ground systems behave correctly in operational conditions, helping to uncover issues that might not appear in smaller-scale lab tests. And this is the part most people overlook: many launch failures are traced back to fuelling and ground systems, not just engines or software.
PLD Space’s CEO and co-founder, Raúl Torres, has highlighted the unveiling of the first integrated Miura 5 as proof that the company’s approach is working. Their strategy combines vertical integration—designing and producing most key systems in-house—with dedicated infrastructure and a culture focused on testing, learning, and iterating. In theory, this model lets the company move quickly and maintain tight control over quality and complexity, rather than depending on a large web of external suppliers. The bold claim is that this allows them to accelerate development without compromising reliability, which is arguably the most critical metric in the launch business.
The company’s production schedule for Miura 5 is aggressive. PLD Space plans to build three fully integrated units in just five months, an impressive pace for a young launcher company. The second qualification unit is expected to be ready around the end of December, providing another platform for tests and refinements before the first flight vehicle is completed. Then, in the first quarter of 2026, PLD Space intends to roll out the actual flight rocket that will travel to Kourou to begin the launch campaign.
If they meet this schedule, PLD Space will claim to have developed an orbital-class launcher in only two years, which would be one of the fastest development cycles in the sector. According to the company, this speed has been possible thanks to the experience gained from Miura 1, whose development and flight gave them valuable data on propulsion, structures, operations, and regulation. Still, some observers might question whether moving this fast leaves enough room for exhaustive testing and incremental improvements, especially in a field where small oversights can lead to spectacular failures.
In parallel with the QM1 campaign, PLD Space is running intensive tests on individual subsystems at its facilities in Teruel. These include engine tests to refine performance and reliability, avionics testing to validate guidance, navigation and control systems, and trials of the mechanisms that separate the payload from the rocket once in space. Each of these pieces has to work flawlessly and in perfect synchrony for the mission to succeed. A single malfunctioning valve, sensor, or separation ring can put an entire payload at risk.
At the same time, major civil engineering work continues at the Guiana Space Centre, where Miura 5 will launch. Construction and adaptation efforts are underway on the launch pad itself, the vehicle preparation areas, and the control centre, where engineers will monitor and manage the mission. When these facilities are ready, PLD Space will become the first privately owned company to launch from this European spaceport, which is managed by CNES, the French space agency. That alone is a significant milestone, because it shows how public institutions and private companies in Europe are beginning to collaborate more closely in a way that resembles partnerships already common in the United States.
When Miura 5 finally flies, the consequences for Spain’s role in space could be historic. A successful launch would give Spain autonomous and independent access to space, placing it among a select group of roughly ten countries with their own national launch capabilities. That means Spanish institutions and companies would not need to rely exclusively on foreign rockets to send their satellites and experiments into orbit, potentially transforming the country’s space industry and its strategic autonomy. The bigger question—and the one that might spark debate—is whether Spain should focus its limited resources on independent launch capability, or instead deepen its participation in broader European programs that share rockets and infrastructure.
So what do you think: is Spain’s push for its own reusable super rocket a visionary leap toward technological sovereignty, or a risky bet in an already saturated launch market? Do you see Miura 5 as a symbol of European innovation catching up, or as an example of too many small players chasing the same dream? Share whether you’re excited, skeptical, or somewhere in between—this is exactly the kind of turning point where diverse opinions can shape the future direction of space policy and private investment.
