Lockheed Martin & ABL space launch from the UK

[Flyaway]

Lockheed Martin no longer expects its UK Pathfinder mission will fly this year, although it remains in the running to perform the first-ever vertical launch to orbit from British soil.

With British microlaunch startup Orbex targeting this year or early next for its maiden flight, the delay appears to pull Lockheed Martin and its launch partner ABL Space Systems behind in the race to perform the United Kingdom’s first vertical orbital launch.

“There are a number of programme dependencies that we continually manage which makes the first quarter of 2023 more favourable,” Nik Smith, Lockheed Martin’s regional director of space for the U.K. and Europe, told SpaceNews via email.

Lockheed and ABL’s first UK vertical launch slips into 2023 - SpaceNews

Lockheed Martin no longer expects its UK Pathfinder mission will fly this year, although it remains in the running to perform the first-ever vertical launch to orbit from British soil.

spacenews.com