A component made in Ukraine has caused the downfall of the French Vega C rocket with satellites, the Italian aerospace company Avio has said after investigating the incident, according to Reuters.
The Zefiro 40 rocket launched from the spaceport in French Guiana on December 20, 2022, collapsed three minutes after takeoff because of engine malfunction. It was carrying two satellites manufactured by Airbus Defense & Space.
“The cause of the failure was the gradual failure of the Zefiro 40 nozzle,” the European Space Agency said.
The second stage of Zefiro 40 was manufactured by the Italian company Avio. It suffered an “unexpected thermo-mechanical overheating” of a carbon component purchased in Ukraine. This composite material is now banned for use.
According to Pierre-Yves Tissier of the French company Arianespace, which conducted the launch, the conclusion was based on a study of identical elements. The European Space Agency also scrutinised Zefiro 40 but found “no design flaws”.
Vega C was to orbit two Earth observation satellites, Pleiades Neo 5 and 6. They were planned to be part of a common group capable of taking images of anywhere on the planet at a resolution of 30 centimetres.
The drop was the third failure in the last eight Vega and Vega C launches. Arianespace promised to overcome a “difficult moment”.
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