these applications, the high temperatures preclude the use of oxide fiber CMCs, because under the expected loads the creep would be too high. Amorphous silicon carbide fibers lose their strength due to re-crystallization at temperatures above . Therefore, carbon fibers in a silicon carbide matrix (C/SiC) are used in development programs for these applications. The European program HERMES of ESA, started in the 1980s and for financial reasons abandoned in 1992, has produced first results. Several follow-up programs focused on the development, manufacture, and qualification of nose cap, leading edges and steering flaps for the NASA X-38 space vehicle. This development program has qualified the use of C/SiC bolts and nuts and the bearing system of the flaps. The latter were ground-tested at the DLR in Stuttgart, Germany, under expected conditions of the re-entry phase: , 4 tonnes load, oxygen partial pressure similar to re-entry conditions, and simultaneous bearing movements of four cycles per second. A total of five re-entry phases were simulated. Design and manufacture of the two steering flaps and its bearings, screws and nuts was performed by MT Aerospace in Augsburg, Germany based on the CVI-process for the production of carbon fiber reinforced silicon carbide (see manufacturing procedures above). Furthermore, oxidation protection systems were developed and qualified to prevent burnout of the carbon fibers. After mounting of the flaps, mechanical ground tests were performed successfully by NASA in Houston, Texas, US. The next test – a real re-entry of the unmanned vehicle X-38 – was canceled for financial reasons. One of the Space Shuttles would have brought the vehicle into orbit, from where it would have returned to the Earth. These qualifications were promising for only this application. The high-temperature load lasts only around 20 minutes per re-entry, and for reusability, only about 30 cycles would be sufficient. For industrial applications in a hot gas environment, though, several hundred cycles of thermal loads and up to many thousands of hours of lifetime are required. The Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV), a project initiated by ESA in 2009, is Europe's first lifting body reentry vehicle. Developed by Thales Alenia Space, the IXV is scheduled to make its first flight in 2014 on the fourth Vega mission (VV04) over the Gulf of Guinea. More than 40 European companies contributed to its construction. The thermal protection system for the underside of the vehicle, comprising the nose, leading edges and lower surface