Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) plans to request ¥23.5 bln (about $148m) in FY2027 to expand H3 rocket launch capacity, roughly eight times FY2026's ¥2.9 bln. The funding would raise annual H3 launches from three in 2025 to six–eight and cut minimum turnaround between launches from about two months to two weeks to win overseas satellite launch business currently dominated by SpaceX. MEXT's total FY2027 aerospace and aviation R&D request would be ¥375

2026-08-27

Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) plans to request ¥23.5 bln (about $148m) in FY2027 to expand H3 rocket launch capacity, roughly eight times FY2026's ¥2.9 bln. The funding would raise annual H3 launches from three in 2025 to six–eight and cut minimum turnaround between launches from about two months to two weeks to win overseas satellite launch business currently dominated by SpaceX. MEXT's total FY2027 aerospace and aviation R&D request would be ¥375 bln, up from ¥151.3 bln in FY2026.