Launch
Firefly Aerospace
Firefly Alpha | FLTA004 Fly the Lightning
- Mission
- rocket
- Pad
- Agency
Mission
FLTA004 Fly the Lightning
Technology
Low Earth Orbit
Firefly’s Alpha rocket will launch Lockheed Martin’s new wideband Electronically Steerable Antenna (ESA) technology integrated on a Terran Orbital Nebula satellite bus. Developed within Lockheed Martin Space’s Ignite organization using a proprietary design, the ESA payload will demonstrate faster on-orbit sensor calibration to deliver rapid capabilities to U.S. warfighters.
Status
Launch was a Partial Failure
Either the launch vehicle reached orbit but did not deliver its payload in the targeted orbit, or an exceptional event made it impossible to consider the mission a success.
Pad
Space Launch Complex 2W
USA
SLC-2W was originally used for Delta, Thor-Agena and Delta II launches. After the last Delta II flight in 2018, SLC-2W was repurposed to launch Firefly Alpha rockets.
Latitude: 34.7556
longitude: -120.6224
Map
Location
America/Los_Angeles
Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Vandenberg Space Force Base is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from the Western Range, and also performs missile testing. The United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 30 serves as the host delta for the base, equivalent to an Air Force air base wing. In addition to its military space launch mission, Vandenberg Space Force Base also hosts space launches for civil and commercial space entities, such as NASA and SpaceX.
798
26
Location Image
Rocket
Firefly Alpha
Firefly Alpha (Firefly α) is a two-stage orbital expendable launch vehicle developed by the American aerospace company Firefly Aerospace to cover the commercial small satellite launch market. Alpha is intended to provide launch options for both full vehicle and ride share customers.
Details
Min stage: 2
Max stage: 2m
Length: 29.0m
Diameter: 1.82
First Flight: Sept. 3, 2021
Total launch count: 5
Successful launches: 3
Failed launches: 2
Pending launches: 5
Consecutive successful launches: 1
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) capacity: 1000kg
Launch cost: US$15000000
Agency
Firefly Aerospace
Firefly Aerospace is an American private aerospace firm based in Austin, Texas, that develops small and medium-sized launch vehicles for commercial launches to orbit.
Details
CEO: Peter Schumacher
2014
Total launch count: 5
Successful launches: 3
Consecutive successful launches: 1
Failed launches: 2
Pending launches: 5
