German rocket startup signs deal with Nova Scotia spaceport
Proposed Canadian spaceports
The German rocket startup Isar Aerospace, which has not yet had a successful launch, has now signed a launch agreement with Maritime Launch Services, the company that has been trying to create a spaceport in Nova Scotia for more than a decade without success.
Space company Isar Aerospace and Spaceport operator Maritime Launch Services (MLS), have signed a Letter of Intent to advance sovereign orbital launch readiness from Nova Scotia, Canada. The agreement brings together Isar Aerospace’s orbital launch system and MLS’s launch site, Spaceport Nova Scotia, which is strategically located for launches to support reliable access to mid- to high-inclination and polar orbits for Earth observation and communication satellites and constellations, supporting commercial and government missions
Isar’s Spectrum rocket failed seconds after launch in its first attempt in 2025, launching from Norway’s Andoya spaceport. Since January the company has tried again several times but was forced to scrub each time. At present the launch is tentatively scheduled for June.
MLS’s history is even more convoluted. Initially a decade ago it partnered with a Ukrainian rocket company to offer launch services at Spaceport Nova Scotia. After years of delays that deal ended for good when Russia invaded the Ukraine. Since then MLS has tried to interest both satellite and rocket companies, all to no avail. This new deal was probably made possible due to financial help from the Canadian government, which in March 2026 signed a 10 year deal with MLS worth $200 million, with the intent to encourage a “sovereign orbital capability” for Canada. Since there are no rocket companies in Canada capable of doing this, it appears that capability will now come from Germany.