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3D PLUS has more than 210,000 microelectronics components in space, and more than 25 years of flight heritage with no reported failure. Our Flight Heritage is expanding continuously with products launched in Space every month in LEO, MEO and GEO orbits, for deep space exploration missions, for satellite constellation fleets, and for governmental missions in Europe, America, and Asia. Our Flagship missions include Mars 2020, Mars Science Laboratory, Rosetta, New Horizons, Juno, OneWeb, AlphaSat, Sentinel, Ariane 5, ISS, Parker Solar Probe, Insight, and many more.
On February 12, 2026, Ariane 6 lifted off from Kourou in its four-booster configuration. This flight, designated VA267, marks an important milestone for the European space program.
The Ariane 6 program is managed by the European Space Agency (ESA) and developed by ArianeGroup. Its goal is to ensure Europe has independent access to space for both institutional and commercial missions.
Ariane 6 succeeds Ariane 5 with a modular architecture. Its upper stage is equipped with a Vinci engine capable of multiple restarts. This allows satellites to be deployed into different orbits during a single mission. Economically, the program has been structured to drastically reduce launch costs in order to remain competitive in the face of new private space actors.
Ariane 6 comes in two versions:
This modularity allows the rocket’s thrust to be adapted to the payload weight, ranging from a capacity of 4.5 tons for the 62 to more than 11.5 tons for the 64. With a common technological base, the program simplifies production and covers the global space market’s needs.
The VA267 mission, launched on February 12, 2026, marks a historic step for the European space program. For the first time, the Ariane 64 configuration lifted off from Kourou with its four boosters. This flight placed 32 satellites into low Earth orbit for the Amazon Leo constellation (formerly Project Kuiper).
This mission paves the way for a higher launch cadence and demonstrates Europe’s ability to meet the needs of telecommunications companies.
For this mission, 3D Plus provided electronic components integrated into Ariane 6’s onboard systems.
Our MRAM, SRAM, and NAND Flash memories are designed to operate in the harsh space environment, with radiation exposure and temperature fluctuations. These components contribute to the reliability of the electronic systems aboard the launcher.
Credit: ESA–M. Pédoussaut
First Ariane 6 with four boosters on the launch pad VA267
