Rosetta will be released from Ariane 5's upper stage at more than 2 hours after liftoff, following a prolonged ballistic phase. The industrial team that produced Rosetta involves more than 50 contractors from 14 European countries and the United States. The prime spacecraft contractor is Astrium Germany, and major subcontractors are Astrium UK (for the spacecraft platform), Astrium France (spacecraft avionics) and Alenia Spazio (assembly, integration and verification).