SpaceX launches first expendable Falcon heavy

Liftoff was scheduled for Wednesday, April 26, at 8:26 PM EDT (00:26 UTC on Monday) at the start of a 57-minute window. However, SpaceX has since delayed it to Friday following bad weather during Thursday’s window. The launch was then moved to Friday, before scrubbing with under a minute to launch from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The latest attempt on Sunday was successful, according to NASA Spaceflight.

This flight — the sixth overall for Falcon Heavy — had been scheduled for April 18 but was delayed after its preflight static fire. The firing was not nominal and revealed at least one undisclosed issue with the vehicle that needed to be corrected in the hangar. Accordingly, SpaceX replaced two engines on Falcon Heavy’s first stage.

The Falcon Heavy for this mission — consisting of core B1068, booster B1052, and booster B1053 — was expended due to the need for all available performance. This results from needing to insert the ViaSat-3 Americas satellite directly into geostationary orbit.

MNA/PR