Vulcain Mk2 engine for Ariane 5E, 1998

The Vulcain Mk2 engine was developed to power the Ariane 5E upgrade. Derived from the previous Vulcain, the thrust was increased from 1145 kN to 1350 kN at sea level. In October 1995, ESA's Ministerial Council in Toulouse, France, formally approved the Ariane 5 Evolution programme to improve the vehicle's geostationary transfer orbit performance from 5.97 tonnes to 7.4 tonnes. The first Ariane 5E launch was planned for May 2002.