One-liner: the public company that runs Castellón Airport — and, through it, hosts and operates ESA BIC Valencia Region, the Comunitat Valenciana's dedicated space/aerospace startup incubator, the region's most concrete non-financial asset for the aerospace-drone niche beyond cluster networking.
What a founder gets
- A physical aerospace incubation site — technical labs and office space at Castellón Airport dedicated to space/aerospace startups (via the ESA BIC program it hosts).
- Access to ESA + Spanish Space Agency (AEE) frameworks — the incubator operates jointly with the European Space Agency and Agencia Espacial Española, giving portfolio companies a direct line to two space agencies, not just a regional cluster.
- A ~40-entity partner network — business organizations, universities, technology institutes and aerospace firms collaborate on the program (startup recruitment, training, networking, investor forums, advisory).
- See ESA BIC Valencia Region for the specific instrument (funding, eligibility, deadlines).
Who it's for
- Space and aerospace-connected startups (satellites, launch, space services, and adjacent deep-tech with a "demonstrable space connection") under 5 years old, based in Castellón, Alicante, or Valencia provinces.
- Distinct from Espai Aero CV (the broader aerospace cluster/lobby covering the whole value chain including drones/UAV and U-space testing) — Aerocas/ESA BIC is the incubation site and cash instrument specifically for space-sector startups, not general aerospace or drone testing.
How to engage
- Apply through the ESA BIC program portal (esabic.aeroportcastello.com) during an open call window.
- Contact: esabic-apply@aeroportcastello.com · +34 964 57 86 00.
- General airport/Aerocas contact via aeroportcastello.com.
Key facts
- Current cohort: 8 startups across two calls — 1st edition: Arkadia Space, Nax Solutions, ODOS Technologies, Nerva Technologies; 2nd edition: Collimate Space, Synaptyx, Valyra Aerospace, Umibots.
- Cohort projects combined 8.5M€ revenue in 2026 (+32% YoY) and 11.7M€ investment captured (up from 2.7M€ in 2025); workforce projected to reach 150 (from 100).
- 3rd call planned to open September 2026 — targeting 4 more startups, bringing the program to 12 companies. Aerocas has started renewing its ESA agreement to support at least 12 additional projects beyond that.
status/verify: exact September 2026 call-open date and renewed-agreement terms not yet confirmed on the live portal as of this scan (2026-07-05) — recheck esabic.aeroportcastello.com in September.
Relations
- Runs: ESA BIC Valencia Region
- Partners with: Espai Aero CV
- See also: Aerospace-Drone (niche)