The end of the first flight of the new European launch vehicle Ariane 6 did not go as planned. Nevertheless, those involved consistently assess the flight as a clear success. An auxiliary engine in the upper stage initially ignited, but then stopped, as the head of rocket manufacturer ArianeGroup, Martin Sion, said. “We have an incident that we do not yet understand,” namely why the auxiliary propulsion stopped. “But the rest of the mission went according to plan.”
The rocket was supposed to launch 17 payloads into space on its first flight. Eventually, the upper stage would burn up on the return journey to Earth. Because the booster engine stopped, the upper stage Vinci engine did not fire again to eject the last two technical passengers. They will now remain in the upper class, which remains in space.
In Initial phase “everything went perfectly”
Sion explained that the flight initially had a launch phase in which several satellites were delivered. “Everything went perfectly.” This was followed by a demonstration phase to see how the upper stage of the rocket behaves in so-called microgravity, a condition in which gravity has no effect or is extremely weak.
“There are things we cannot test on site”
Sion said of the incident: “It’s a shame, but that’s also why we do a technical demonstration, because there are things we can’t test on the ground. With the test phase at the end of the first flight, you want to gather as much information as possible.
The data needed to shed more light on the incident is not yet available. As soon as it becomes clear what exactly happened, the general public will be informed, Sion assured.
The Ariane 6 is the successor to the Ariane 5, which was in service from 1996 to summer 2023. It is intended to launch satellites into space for commercial and public customers and is significantly cheaper than its predecessor.
Source: Krone
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