New Vega rocket lifts off successfully: ESA
PARIS. February 14. KAZINFORM New Vega launcher scores success on its maiden flight on Monday morning, the European Space Agency (ESA) said in a statement, Kazinform has learned from Xinhua.
The new Vega rocket, designated Flight VV01, lifted off into orbit from the new launch site at Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, carrying nine satellites.
"The first Vega lifted off at 1000 GMT (11:00 CET, 07:00 local time) from the new launch pad, and conducted a flawless qualification flight," the statement said.
"It is a great day for ESA, its Member States, in particularly Italy where Vega was born, for European industry and for Arianespace," said Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General of ESA, in the statement.
With Vega extending the family of launchers available at the spaceport, Europe now covers the full range of launch needs, from small science and Earth observation satellites to the largest missions like ESA's supply freighters to the International Space Station.
"In a little more than three months, Europe has increased the number of launchers it operates from one to three, widening significantly the range of launch services offered by the European operator Arianespace. There is not anymore one single European satellite which cannot be launched by a European launcher service," Dordain added.
The first qualification flight of the Vega launch vehicle is intended to qualify the overall lightweight rocket system.
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