Overview
- Alpha lifted off March 11 at 8:50 p.m. Eastern from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Space Force Base, following two scrubs earlier in the week for minor technical issues.
- The two-stage vehicle performed as planned with a second-stage engine relight, and Firefly declared the flight a complete success.
- The rocket carried a Lockheed Martin demonstrator payload, with the company declining to disclose additional details or the target orbit.
- Firefly’s return follows an April 2025 failure traced to first‑stage structural failure from higher‑than‑expected aeroheating and a September 2025 Texas test‑stand explosion attributed to fluid‑line contamination, prompting process improvements.
- Flight 7 was the final mission of the current Alpha configuration, and Firefly exercised new avionics and thermal‑protection elements to build flight heritage for the forthcoming Block 2 upgrade.