ArianeGroup CEO is said to plan resignation after third unsuccessful space launch

Andre-Hubert Roussel early next week will resign from his role as CEO of ArianeGroup, the joint venture between Safran and Airbus, French newspaper La Tribune reported on Thursday Mar. 30.

The company’s Arianespace unit has struggled with unsuccessful launches, including the failure in December of a Vega-C rocket loaded with two Earth-imaging satellites made by Airbus.

The failed launch was the third in the past eight flights of Vega and Vega-C rockets, and another setback for the European Space Agency (ESA) and Arianespace.

The company’s Ariane 6 and Vega-C rockets were designed to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX in launching satellites into orbit. SpaceX’s reusable Falcon 9 has driven down the price of satellite launches.

Arianespace two weeks ago signed a contract with the ESA to launch the IRIDE constellation of imaging satellites. The agreement includes two Vega-C launches starting in 2025 with an option for a third. IRIDE is a project funded by Italy’s government.