SaxaVord Spaceport

SaxaVord Spaceport is a vertical launch site on the Lamba Ness peninsula in Unst, the most northerly inhabited island in Shetland. It is operated by Shetland Space Centre Limited and is designed to launch small satellites into polar and sun-synchronous orbits.

In December 2023 the Civil Aviation Authority granted the site a spaceport licence for up to 30 launches a year. SaxaVord was the second UK spaceport to be licensed and the first able to host vertical launches. A range licence followed in April 2024. Launch companies that have announced plans to use the site include Rocket Factory Augsburg, HyImpulse, and Skyrora. In March 2026 HyImpulse signed an agreement for the second flight of its SR75 suborbital rocket. The company also receives satellite data at ground station antennae in Unst and is working with partners on a wider ground station network.

The business was formed in 2017 by Frank Strang, Scott Hammond, and Debbie Strang at the former RAF Saxa Vord base. Its site office is at Haroldswick in Unst, and the company's registered office is in Grantown-on-Spey. In September 2026 SaxaVord welcomed UK Government plans to put £30 million into a £60 million public and private programme to speed up UK orbital launch capability.