The P160C is an upgrade of the P120C motor developed jointly by ArianeGroup and Avio through their 50/50 joint-venture Europropulsion, and it is one of the world’s largest carbon-fibre one-piece solid-propellant rocket motors. The development programme is managed and funded by the European Space Agency.

The P120C is currently used as a booster for the Ariane 6 rocket, and as the first stage for the Vega-C launcher. The upgraded P160C carries over 14 tonnes more solid fuel, increasing both rockets’ performance, increasing their payload capacity and competitiveness.

“Passing the qualification review is always a huge milestone in space design: independent teams have assessed the data packages, analysed the technical files and confirmed our design is robust,” says Alessandro Ciucci, ESA’s Programme Manager for both P120C and P160C.”