Stairway to Seven
Firefly Alpha · Firefly Aerospace · Vandenberg SFB
- Launch (UTC)
- Mar 12, 2026, 00:50 UTC
- Outcome
- Launched successfully
- Rocket
- Firefly Alpha
- Provider
- Firefly Aerospace
- Site
- Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Firefly Alpha's Flight 7 is a test flight and return-To-Flight for the launch vehicle after its April 2025 launch failure. It will test and validate key systems ahead of Firefly’s Block II configuration upgrade on Flight 8 that’s designed to enhance reliability and manufacturability across the vehicle. Flight 7 is the last flown in Alpha’s current configuration and will test multiple Block II subsystems, including the in-house avionics and thermal improvements, to gain flight heritage and validate lessons learned ahead of the full configuration upgrade on Flight 8. This launch also delivered a demonstrator payload for Lockheed Martin.