Test stand ready for P120C static firing

The P120C solid rocket development motor held inside the test stand at Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, awaits its first static firing on 16 July 2018.

It is the largest single-unit, carbon-fibre solid-propellant motor ever built. This motor will replace P80 as the first stage motor of Vega-C. Two or four P120Cs will be strapped onto Ariane 6 as boosters for liftoff.

Its development relies on innovative technologies derived from the P80, Vega’s current first stage motor.