Firefly signs contract with SSC Space for two Alpha launches from Esrange
Firefly Aerospace · SSC Space
Firefly and SSC Space signed a contract for two Alpha rocket launches from Esrange, Sweden, targeted no earlier than 2028.
updates
- 2026-09-09score 4 → 5Firefly's own release (first_party) confirms the companies signed a contract for two specific Alpha launches, upgrading the original June 30 SpaceNews trade lead which only reported a targeted 2028 date; folded into the existing item as the same ongoing Esrange launch-site story rather than a new item.
- 2026-07-08Firefly and SSC Space target 2028 for first Esrange launch
what happened
Firefly Aerospace said September 9 it signed a contract with SSC Space for two Firefly Alpha launches from Launch Complex 3C at Esrange Space Center in Sweden, targeted no earlier than 2028, per Firefly's release. SSC Space has secured the full payload capacity of the two missions and will allocate it to its own government and commercial customers, including Swedish national-security payloads and commercial rideshare. The agreement follows the companies' June 30 announcement targeting 2028 for Alpha's first Esrange launch, when they disclosed a 209 million SEK contract with Sweden's defence procurement agency to support military satellite launches.
why it matters
A signed two-launch contract, rather than a targeted date, gives Firefly a concrete manifest commitment for its first mainland-Europe launch site and gives Sweden a dedicated national-security launch option outside French Guiana. It also shows SSC Space acting as an aggregator, reselling booked capacity to its own government and commercial customers rather than Firefly selling directly to each end user.
for who
European government satellite programs, smallsat launch competitors
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Firefly Aerospace, SSC Space
- Category
- launch
- Impact
- notable
- SNR
- 5 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-06-30
- Published
- 2026-07-05 08:57 UTC