ISC advances engine development through multiple approaches

Innovative Space Carrier (ISC), headquartered in Chuo-ku, Tokyo and led by CEO Kojiro Hatada, is advancing the development of reusable rockets by pursuing multiple approaches to engine development. 

ISC and Letara form strategic partnership for hybrid engines

On April 14, ISC announced that it has signed a comprehensive collaboration agreement with Letara, a Hokkaido-based startup co-founded by Landon Kemps and Shodai Hirai. The two companies began joint development of a hybrid engine rocket system in January 2025. 

Letara’s core technology is based on CAMUI rockets, which have been developed and tested for over 20 years at the Harunori Nagata Laboratory, part of the Graduate School of Engineering at Hokkaido University. CAMUI-based hybrid engines combine solid fuel and liquid oxidizer, resulting in a simpler and safer structure compared to traditional liquid-fueled engines, with superior cost efficiency and shorter development times. 

The two companies plan to begin engine combustion tests using actual prototypes by the end of 2025. 

Liquid methane engine test successful 

In a separate announcement on April 16, ISC reported a successful combustion test of its in-house developed liquid methane engine.　According to publicly available data, ISC is the fourth Japanese private company to have succeeded in such a test. 

Kojiro Hatada, CEO of ISC, stated: 

“Our goal is to launch a satellite by 2028. To achieve that, we need an engine that is both safe and highly reliable. That’s why we are approaching development from multiple directions—so we can bring this vision to reality as quickly as possible.”