Avinor opens launch window for Isar Aerospace’s third Spectrum Flight

Avinor, Norway’s air navigation services provider, published an aviation notice on Oct. 28, 2026, that opens a launch window for Isar Aerospace’s third Spectrum test flight from Andøya Spaceport in Norway, with attempts possible as early as Nov. 26, 2026. Isar Aerospace has not publicly announced an expected launch date.

The approved three-month window runs from Nov. 26, 2026, through Feb. 17, 2027, and allows launch attempts each day between 20:00 and 21:30 UTC. The source calls the period an approved window, though Isar Aerospace has not set a public target date within it.

Spectrum Flight 3 is the third test flight of Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum launch vehicle, operated by Isar Aerospace. Liftoff is planned from the Orbital Launch Pad at Andøya Spaceport for a technology mission to Sun-Synchronous Orbit. Multiple scheduling sources list the date as NET Nov. 26, to be confirmed, with the launch window lasting through Feb. 17.

The mission will carry R-Space’s AT-Astra/IOD-01 spacecraft, which will host in-orbit technology demonstrations for ENPULSION, SUNBOOSTER GmbH, and Synopsis Planet. Isar Aerospace has not announced a complete payload manifest for the flight. R-Space, an Austrian satellite company, confirmed in June that AT-Astra would be included on the mission.

Technology demonstrations for Synopsis Planet in Portugal and for the Austrian firms ENPULSION and SunBooster are expected on the AT-Astra spacecraft. The launch will carry various satellites beyond those named.

Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum completed its second flight on Sept. 5, 2026, achieving the vehicle’s first successful mission. An earlier March 2025 attempt ended before a full minute passed after liftoff, and the rocket crashed into the Norwegian Sea close to the launch pad. That failure preceded the September success, which cleared the way for preparations on a third flight.

After the September success, Isar Aerospace confirmed that Spectrum vehicles three through seven were already in production. Chief Executive Officer Daniel Metzler said at a post-flight press conference that the third rocket had entered final assembly. Metzler said the next step is acceptance testing before transport to Norway. The executive made the remarks after the successful second launch on Sept. 5, 2026.

Isar Aerospace announced a leadership change on Sept. 21, 2026, just over two weeks after the successful Sept. 5, 2026, Spectrum launch. Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Josef Fleischmann said he is stepping down as CTO to develop other space technologies at Bavaria Instruments, a company he recently founded, while retaining his stake in Isar Aerospace. Can Araz will succeed Fleischmann as Chief Technology Officer.

Fleischmann praised Araz’s technical expertise and understanding of their systems and said Araz is ideally suited to lead the technology and development organization into the next phase. He said Bavaria Instruments continues the mission of turning European engineering into real production capability. “At Isar Aerospace, we have demonstrated that world-class engineering can be translated into real production capabilities here in Europe.” Bavaria Instruments intends to focus initially on computing technologies for orbit, enabling direct in-space processing of data to improve real-time analysis of Earth observation data and the autonomous operation and collaboration of spacecraft.

Andøya Space, also known as Andøya Space Center and formerly Andøya Rocket Range, serves as a rocket launch site, rocket range, and spaceport on Andøya island in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Andøya island is the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago.

Launch times for Spectrum Flight 3 can change based on weather conditions, technical readiness, and range availability. Weather conditions that could delay the flight include lightning within 10 nautical miles, high winds, thick cloud layers, precipitation, and poor visibility. Favorable weather is required at the launch site, downrange landing zones, and abort landing sites.

The Space Launch Schedule page provides real-time updates on Spectrum Flight 3 launch status, including delays or scrubs. Push notifications through the mobile app provide instant alerts about status changes, weather holds, or new launch times, and official Isar Aerospace live streams offer immediate range updates. UchUchU lists Spectrum Flight 3 as the next Isar Aerospace launch for Nov. 26, 2026, from Andøya Spaceport, with listings without a fixed time shown without one and all times in UTC. The site shows four upcoming launches and one recent result for Isar Aerospace and is updated daily.