Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha FLTA006 rocket suffered a launch failure on Tuesday, resulting in the loss of the Lockheed Martin satellite it was carrying.
In a statement, Firefly said the mission began with a nominal liftoff and reached 320 km altitude; however, a failure between stage separation and second stage ignition caused the loss of the engine nozzle extension, reducing thrust. As a result, the rocket’s upper stage failed to reach orbital velocity, and both the stage and payload safely fell into the Pacific Ocean. Firefly said it is working with Lockheed Martin, the FAA and other partners to investigate the cause of the failure.
A livestream of the launch showed debris breaking away from the rocket mid-flight, and the on-screen data for altitude and speed disappeared moments earlier than usual, suggesting a problem during ascent.
According to Reuters, Tuesday’s launch failure marks four out of six Alpha missions since 2021 that have proven unsuccessful. Alpha FLTA006 was Firefly’s second launch for Lockheed Martin and is the inaugural flight under a multi-launch agreement between the two companies, which outlines up to 25 missions over the next five years.
