Firefly Alpha rocket launch dates, history and schedule

Firefly Aerospace is a private aerospace company developing the small, low-cost Alpha and Beta Firefly launch vehicles to carry small satellites to LEO. The company was founded in 2014 by American rocket engineer Tom Markusic, who is committed to the idea of “New Space” ─ to making space launches more accessible to commercial customers.

An 8-year path to orbit

In eight years, the company has grown from a small startup to a prominent and promising player in the space market. This breakthrough was facilitated by a powerful symbiosis of science, technical skills and about $100 million in investments from the venture fund Noosphere Ventures Partners. Collaboration with Ukraine, which has rich experience in rocket science, also played a big role.

Thanks to the managing partner of Noosphere Ventures and the former head of the company, Max Polyakov, who has Ukrainian roots, in 2017, the Firefly R&D centre was opened in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. It attracted more than 50 of the best engineers, scientists and technicians from leading Ukrainian rocket and space enterprises, notably Yuzhniy Design Bureau and Yuzhmash engineering plant. It was in R&D Firefly Dnipro that the automation and combustion chamber units for the first Alpha launch were created. In the future, the company plans to establish a full cycle of rocket engine production, including engines for the Beta rocket, which is still under development.

In early 2022, Firefly carried out the first Alpha launch and is now preparing for a full-fledged entry into the market.

What is the Firefly launch vehicle and how is it different?

Up to 300 small satellites are annually delivered to different orbits, and these launches do not always require very powerful and expensive rockets. Tom Markusic’s idea was to provide a cost-effective option that would eliminate the dependence on infrequent heavy rocket launches. And he almost succeeded. A Firefly space launch costs a quarter of a Falcon or Ariane rocket launch. At the same time, unlike current micro-launchers, Virgin Orbit Launcher One and Rocket Lab Electron, Firefly will be able to deliver over 1100 kg of cargo to low Earth orbit (200 km) and over 740 kg to sun-synchronous orbit (500 km).

First rocket engine tests

The company’s rapid development and tangible results secured Firefly Aerospace not only private customers but also US government contracts. In 2019, the US Air Force selected Firefly for its Launch program. In December 2020, NASA included the company in the Launch Services Program for launching ultra-small satellites and CubeSats into orbit, and in January 2021, in the Artemis Commercial Moon Delivery program. This means that the Alpha launch vehicle has been entrusted with the delivery of cargo for lunar missions.

Alpha rocket characteristics

Firefly rocket has a lot of advantages, but the most important one is the combination of characteristics and delivery cost. Here’s what Alpha’s main specs look like compared to its closest launcher competitors.

First Alpha Launch

The first Firefly launch took place on September 3, 2021, from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The Vandenberg payload included microsatellites for the DREAM educational mission. During the first two and a half minutes the flight went well, the rocket lifted off successfully and broke the sound barrier, but was then destroyed by the emergency flight termination system. The cause was a loss of orientation brought on by a malfunction in one of the four first-stage engines. A detailed investigation showed a faulty electrical connector and several “components that can be easily replaced.”

The company stated that, even though the launch ended in failure, it provided important data to avoid errors on future flights. However, the next Alpha launch date has shifted several times.

Full launch video

In the video below, you can see how the first Alpha launch went, from the moment the rocket left the ground to the controlled explosion.

Next Firefly Launch

On July 17th, 2022, the company postponed the second Alpha launch once again. This decision was taken for several reasons: the busy schedule of government launches at Vandenberg Air Force Base, additional tests of the Reaver engine that experienced an anomaly during the first launch, and pending application for a new FAA launch licence. 

“We have the unfortunate precedent of being the first large composite rocket ever to be terminated,” told the executive director of Firefly, Peter Schumacher. Previous debris models, including the one used for that flight, were based on metallic rockets. “So when we did terminate, some of the pieces fell outside where this model predicted.” Schumacher also specified that the revised model now matches the behaviour observed on the first launch, so they are awaiting final approval by the FAA and Western Range.

On August 17th, Firefly Aerospace reported about the successful completion of the Alpha rocket static fire test and announced a new launch date – September 11th. The new rocket is currently at the company’s launch site at Vandenberg, and engineers are making final preparations.

If the second Alpha launch goes well, the next launch could take place as early as November. Currently, it is planned to be a test launch. In the future, Firefly Aerospace expects to launch up to 6 commercial Alpha rockets yearly, one rocket every 2-3 months.

On July 17th, 2022, the company postponed the second Alpha launch once again. This decision was taken for several reasons: the busy schedule of government launches at Vandenberg Air Force Base, additional tests of the Reaver engine that experienced an anomaly during the first launch, and pending application for a new FAA launch licence. 

“We have the unfortunate precedent of being the first large composite rocket ever to be terminated,” told the executive director of Firefly, Peter Schumacher. Previous debris models, including the one used for that flight, were based on metallic rockets. “So when we did terminate, some of the pieces fell outside where this model predicted.” Schumacher also specified that the revised model now matches the behaviour observed on the first launch, so they are awaiting final approval by the FAA and Western Range.

On August 17th, Firefly Aerospace reported about the successful completion of the Alpha rocket static fire test and announced a new launch date – September 11th. The new rocket is currently at the company’s launch site at Vandenberg, and engineers are making final preparations.

If the second Alpha launch goes well, the next launch could take place as early as November. Currently, it is planned to be a test launch. In the future, Firefly Aerospace expects to launch up to 6 commercial Alpha rockets yearly, one rocket every 2-3 months.

Firefly Alpha launch schedule

Follow the upcoming Firefly launches with us

The two-stage Firefly Alpha is designed to compete with such rockets as Virgin Orbit Launcher One, Arianespace Vega, and Rocket Lab Electron. In the near future, we will see if it succeeds.

In any case, the work continues, and the first failure did not stop an ambitious team. After all, even the legendary SpaceX Falcon was successfully launched only on the fourth attempt. Orbital Today will closely monitor Firefly’s progress and update you on it. Get ready ─ Firefly’s next launch is just around the corner. Follow our Firefly launch updates!