Tuesday, September 7, 2021

Firefly Aerospace Rocket Explodes After Vandenberg Launch

Space flight company Firefly Aerospace had a dramatic end to its first test flight of its rocket last week at Vandenberg Air Force Base, after its vehicle tumbled out of control two minutes, 30 seconds after launch. The company said last week that it range terminated its own flight after its one of the engines on its rocket shut down. The flight was the first for Firefly Aerospace, which is based in Texas. The company said that--despite the destruction of its rocket--the day "marked a major advancement for our team". The company said about 15 seconds into flight, one of the four engines on its rocket "simply closed" and the rocket was unable to move into supersonic flight.