The European Space Agency (ESA) has finally revealed the slot for the inaugural flight of the Ariane 6 rocket, scheduled between June 15 and July 31, 2024. Initially planned for 2020, the launch of the new European heavy launcher suffered numerous delays.
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The green light is finally given. The inaugural flight of the Ariane 6 rocket should take place between June 15 and July 31, 2024, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced this Thursday, November 30. “ It’s a good day for space Europe “, declared Josef Aschbacher, the director of the ESA, during a press conference. Initially planned for 2020, the first flight of Ariane 6, designed to face competition from the American launcher Space X, has been postponed several times due to the Covid-19 pandemic and development difficulties.
🚀#Ariane6 first launch is now targeted between mid June and end of July 2024!
With the latest test complete, Ariane 6 has been through the essential rehearsals required for qualification. We have validated our models, increased our knowledge of operations and are now confident… pic.twitter.com/1Ak7qJSSDu
— Josef Aschbacher (@AschbacherJosef) November 30, 2023
The decision follows the “ complete success », according to Josef Aschbacher, of a critical test carried out on November 23 in Kourou, Guyana. This test consisted of firing the Vulcain 2.1 engine, which will power the main stage of the launcher.
Europe deprived of independent access to space
News which represents a way out of the crisis for Europe, forced to turn to SpaceX to launch its satellites from retirement of Ariane 5 last July and awaiting a return to flight of the Vega-C light launcher, not before 2024. “ We are on the right track to once again guarantee European access to space », vibrated the director of the ESA.
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Between now and the summer, the European Space Agency has scheduled two important milestones. On December 7, with a test of the Vinci re-ignitable engine of the upper stage, in Germany, then on December 15, with a filling test of all stages followed by a brief engine ignition, in Kourou. These two tests aim to “ verify that the reliability and robustness of the design (of the launcher) meets expectations ”, under conditions called “ degraded “, has explained Martin Sion, executive chairman of ArianeGroup.
The final launch date, which should be announced in March or April 2024, will still depend on a general qualification review of the launcher as well as the “ real industrial challenge of going from building two to nine launchers per year », added Martin Sion.
(With AFP)