en.Wedoany.com Reported - German rocket manufacturer Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) has announced an indefinite postponement of the inaugural launch of its RFA ONE rocket, after the company identified an issue during inspections that "requires further investigation," putting the UK's first domestic orbital launch on hold once again.
RFA had planned to carry out the launch mission this summer from SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland. The company stated on platform X that the rocket would need to be disassembled to identify the potential issue. The previously confirmed launch window was set for a five-week period starting August 10 (Monday), with the final launch decision originally scheduled to be confirmed 24 hours before the window opened based on local conditions, during which a restricted zone would be established around the spaceport, flight routes adjusted, and vessels evacuated.
Development of the RFA ONE rocket began in 2019. It is a small multi-stage launch vehicle designed to deliver payloads of up to 1,300 kilograms of small and micro satellites into low Earth polar orbit and sun-synchronous orbit. The rocket's launch date had already been postponed from 2022 to 2024, and was subsequently delayed again to this summer.
In August 2024, all nine engines of the rocket's first stage ignited a fire during a static fire test, causing an explosion that completely destroyed the first stage and severely damaged the launch pad.
Over the past decade, most Western countries, including the UK, have relied on American companies and launch sites for orbital launch missions. As the UK advances its space industry development, the need to build domestic launch capabilities has drawn attention.
Spaceport Cornwall, located in Cornwall, became the UK's first regulator-approved launch site in late 2022, but a subsequent launch attempt using Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket failed due to an anomaly in the payload technology.
Scotland-based Orbex was responsible for the Sutherland spaceport development project, which had begun construction, but Orbex entered administration earlier this year.
Due to latitude constraints, rocket launches from the UK mainland are relatively less efficient, and heavy geostationary satellites and deep-space missions will continue to rely on southern launch partners.
