Dassault Aviation gets government support for VORTEX spaceplane demonstrator

PARIS (Reuters) -Dassault Aviation and the French government signed on Friday an agreement whereby France's armed forces ministry would support the development of Dassault Aviation's VORTEX spaceplane demonstrator.

The agreement was signed at the Paris Airshow between French armed forces minister Sebastien Lecornu and Dassault Aviation CEO and Chairman Eric Trappier.

The government support for the Dassault Aviation VORTEX project comes as President Emmanuel Macron on Friday threw France's backing behind plans for a European satellite manufacturing champion.

At the Paris Airshow, Macron also called for accelerated deployment of Starlink-type satellites as he declared space the new theatre for world power competition.

"At the crossroads of aviation and space technologies, the VORTEX will undoubtedly pave the way for a new generation of space aeronautics, consolidating France's strategic position as a leading space power," said Eric Trappier in a statement.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher;Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)