A further step on the way towards the first Ariane 6 flight: ArianeGroup teams have completed integration of the first booster for the Ariane 6 inaugural flight. It has been moved from the booster finishing facility at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana to a storage building, awaiting transfer to the launch pad.

The strap-on boosters (technically called lateral solid rocket motors) with the P120C engine provide most of the thrust at lift-off.

21 meters tall with a girth of 3.4 meters, these impressive boosters each carry 142 tons of solid propellant to feed the P120C engine, which can deliver a thrust of up to 4,500 kN during take-off. They operate for a little over two minutes (135 seconds); once they are empty, they detach from the rocket.

An Ariane 6 launcher can be equipped with either two or four boosters, depending on the thrust needed for a specific space mission.

Ariane 6’s inaugural flight will be an A62 configuration, with two boosters. Integration of the second booster is currently underway at the booster finishing facility at the Spaceport.