Falcon Heavy returns after 18 months
- SpaceX launched its Falcon Heavy rocket Monday from Kennedy Space Center, sending Viasat’s ViaSat-3 F3 broadband satellite toward geostationary transfer orbit after an 18-month gap. - The mission used a new center core, reused side boosters, and called for satellite deployment nearly five hours after liftoff with twin landings. - ViaSat-3 F3 completes Viasat’s three-satellite global network aimed at Asia-Pacific service and government customers. (viasat.com)
A Falcon Heavy flew again Monday, lifting Viasat’s ViaSat-3 F3 satellite from Kennedy Space Center on SpaceX’s first mission with the rocket in more than 18 months. (spacex.com) (spaceflightnow.com) The launch window opened at 10:21 a.m. Eastern on April 27 from Launch Complex 39A in Florida, with a backup opportunity set for Tuesday, April 28. (spacex.com) Falcon Heavy is SpaceX’s triple-core version of Falcon 9, using three first-stage boosters strapped together to lift heavier payloads toward high-energy orbits. On this flight, the rocket was assigned to geostationary transfer orbit, the elongated path communications satellites use before raising themselves into final position above Earth. (spaceflightnow.com) (viasat.com) SpaceX said the two side boosters were scheduled to land at Landing Zones 2 and 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station about eight minutes after liftoff. The center core, B1098, was not being recovered and was set to fall into the Atlantic after its first flight. (spacex.com) (spaceflightnow.com) The side boosters were not both new hardware. Spaceflight Now reported booster B1072 was flying for a second time and B1075 for a 22nd time, while the center core was brand new. (spaceflightnow.com) Viasat said ViaSat-3 F3 is the final satellite in its ViaSat-3 constellation and is designed to add more than 1 terabit per second of throughput over the Asia-Pacific region. The company said the spacecraft is expected to enter service in late summer 2026 after months of orbit-raising and in-orbit testing. (viasat.com) The satellite is part of a broader rebuild and expansion of Viasat’s network after problems with the first ViaSat-3 spacecraft. Viasat said ViaSat-3 F1 entered service in 2024, and said in April that testing on ViaSat-3 F2 was still advancing. (viasat.com) SpaceX’s mission timeline called for ViaSat-3 F3 to separate from the upper stage 4 hours, 57 minutes and 31 seconds after liftoff. That long coast is one reason Falcon Heavy is used sparingly: the rocket is reserved for payloads that need more energy than a standard Falcon 9 can usually provide. (spacex.com) For SpaceX, the flight put Falcon Heavy back on the pad after a long pause. For Viasat, it was the last launch needed to put the company’s three-satellite ViaSat-3 system in place. (spaceflightnow.com) (viasat.com)
