BUILDING AN AEROSPACE COMPANY ON THE FRINGES OF SPACE-FARING NATIONS: CASA AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SPACE INDUSTRY IN SPAIN (1960s-1980s)

Abstract

In the 1960s, the Franco regime got involved in various space activities, in partnership with the United States as well as with Western European countries. Spain was a founding country of the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO), the body in charge of the development of space science at European level. This organisation also pursued an industrial policy whose objective was to create a space industry in Europe. In Spain from 1963, Construcciones Aeronáuticas Sociedad Anónima (CASA) engaged in the promotion and development of outer space activities. To develop this activity it fostered international partnerships, in particular with the French company Sud-Aviation. In parallel, the Spanish firm also became increasingly committed to the aeronautics sector. Two types of sources are used for the research in this paper. One is the firm’s internal documentation, including annual statements of accounts, board of directors’ minutes and strategic plans. The second source is official French archives from the ministry of Industry and the French space agency. The research shows how CASA evolved over three decades from an aircraft company to an aerospace firm by acquiring scientific and technical knowledge and making operational and organizational choices. The history of the firm is analysed within the context of the country’s political and economic evolution.