Dawn Aerospace successfully completes its first rocket powered flight of spaceplane, the Mk-II Aurora. The flights occurred at Glentanner Aerodrome near Aoraki Mount Cook. Video / Dawn Aerospace
New Zealand’s space sector got a boost today with the opening of an upgraded 1km runway and hangar at the Tāwhaki National Aerospace Centre.
Tāwhaki is a joint venture between the crown and two local Ngai Tahu rūnanga on 1000 hectares at Kaitorete Spit. The narrow isthmus runsbetween the ocean and Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere, west of Banks Peninsula.
The facilities upgrade was funded by a $5.4 million grant from the previous Government’s $200m Regional Strategic Partnership Fund - an offshoot of the Provincial Growth Fund.
Kaitorete Spit - home of the Tāwhaki National Aerospace Centre - was also the site chosen by Peter Beck in 2015 for Rocket Lab's first launch complex. But then Green MP Eugenie Sage objected to the development on environmental grounds. Beck - who now employs 750 in NZ - decamped for Mahia.
And its funding was small potatoes next to the sums Rocket Lab has received from the US state of Virginia ($70m, plus $26m in indirect support) and the US Air Force’s Space Force ($34m) to expand its American operations and work on its Neutron rocket.
But Tāwhaki says the $5.4m upgrade will help ”enable aerospace and tech sector growth that delivers over 1300 high-value, high-wage jobs, and up to $2.4 billion in economic benefits over the next 10 years”.
Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora suborbital spaceplane on the upgraded runway at Tāwhaki. The prototype is tiny, but the startup hopes to build a model large enough to carry a satellite to low-Earth orbit.
US-based Wisk Aero, which is developing an electric, self-flying small plane, recently conducted its world-first airspace integration test flights from Kaitorete, Tāwhaki And Dawn Aerospace and Kea Aerospace will now be able to conduct horizontal space launches and stratospheric flights from the site.
The upgraded runway.
Dawn Aerospace, a Kiwi-Dutch firm, is developing a spaceplane it hopes will one day carry satellites to low Earth orbit. It already has a business supplying propulsion systems for satellites, including three for putative Starlink rival Lynk.
With Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora spaceplane are CEO and CTO Stefan Powell, operations lead Tim Dutton, finance manager Vivien Knight, test pilot Iagho Amaral and sales and marketing manager Catherine Moreau Hammond. Photo / Chris Keall
Kea, founded by early Rocket Lab employee Mark Rocket, is developing a high-altitude, solar-powered drone. He hopes to ultimately launch a 32m wingspan model that will provide a cheaper alternative for everything from aerial photography to offering broadband during natural disasters.
Tāwhaki director David Perenara-O’Connell said mana whenua of Kaitorete were proud to be at the forefront of supporting the country’s aerospace sector and acknowledged their partnership with the New Zealand Government in the Tāwhaki Joint Venture.
“To fully enable the sector, supply chains and realise the economic benefits for all New Zealanders, takes a collaborative approach. We’re grateful for the support of our government, local authorities, regulators, aerospace partners, research and science communities, and suppliers who share our vision of a world-leading hub for innovation and exploration.
Kea Aerospace founder Mark Rocket at his firm's assembly plant in Christchurch. Photo / Chris Keall.
“We believe that this mission is truly unique. The way we weave together mātauranga Māori [indigenous knowledge] with cutting-edge innovation in aerospace and environmental rejuvenation, marks a new era in sustainable land use.”
Kaitorete offers clear skies and access to a wide range of orbits from an expansive, unpopulated, flat strip of land 25km long, nestled between Te Waihora (Lake Ellesmere) and the Pacific Ocean. Its proximity to world-class universities, international air and seaports and advanced manufacturing capabilities in nearby Ōtautahi Christchurch is globally unique, Tāwhaki says.
Kea Aerospace is working toward a high-flying, solar-powered drone with a 32m wingspan. Photo / Artist's render
Tāwhaki chief executive Linda Falwasser said the joint venture was taking a staged approach to its developments, with the potential to support vertical space launch in future.
“We have one of the world’s best locations for aerospace and space launch and we’re prioritising critical infrastructure alongside rejuvenation of this special whenua [land]. This includes exploring solar power and green hydrogen production and storage.”
“Having this key infrastructure so accessible is hugely enabling for the whole sector,” Dawn Aerospace cofounder James Powell said.
“It will be transformative to the development of our rocket-powered aircraft, the Mk-II Aurora.”
Kea Aerospace CEO Mark Rocket said: “Kaitorete is situated in an ideal location for aerospace research and development, and offers Kea Aerospace unique opportunities for flight testing and operations of our solar-powered stratospheric aircraft.”
What could have been
While Christchurch has emerged as a hub for aerospace startups, the industry’s big dog, Rocket Lab ultimately abandoned its plan to base itself at Kaitorete.
In 2015, founder Peter Beck was shaping up to build his firm’s first launchpad at the Canterbury site, which he said would create 200 jobs (Rocket Lab now employs 750 in NZ, mainly in Auckland, and 1650 worldwide).
But he faced objections led by Green MP Eugenie Sage, who said the plan threatened the landscape, including habitats for rare lizards. Beck decamped for Mahia.
Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.
