You could try to get into studying aerospace engineering in a nation with ties to ESA. I've seen students go straight into industry-related jobs from being good

You could try to get into studying aerospace engineering in a nation with ties to ESA. I've seen students go straight into industry-related jobs from being good assistant researchers here (Germany) - of course there'd be the age gap. I've personnaly seen people getting into those in their 30s (doing their thesis in an applied research institute closer to industry). The university even had voluntary student programmes that were designing microsatellites (which actually got built and sent to space) and you could join the teams if you simply were up to it and put in the effort.