Ariane 5 launch campaign
Toucan or Colibri – the two specialised freighters that carred parts of the Ariane 5 launcher – need 12 days to ship their cargo from Europe to the harbour in Kourou, French Guiana.
Upon arrival, the cryogenic main stage, the vehicle equipment bay and the upper stage of the Ariane 5 were transferred to the Launcher Integration Building while the fairing was taken to the Final Assembly Building.
In the Launcher Integration Building the cryogenic main stage was erected vertically onto the launch table The two solid boosters, previously prepared in the Booster Preparation Building, also arrived in the building and are vertically docked to the main stage supporting it on either side. Afterwards, the vehicle equipment bay and the upper stage were mounted on top of the main stage. The “lower composite” was then assembled.
Tightness and electrical checks could then be carried out. In all it took 16 days until the doors of the Launcher Integration Building opened to allow the launch table to be moved along the rail track to the launcher section of the Final Assembly Building.
Here the upper composite, consisting of one or two satellites and the fairing, was assembled on top of the lower composite so that the launcher was structurally complete. The next step was to fill the upper stage and the altitude control systems with propellant and to perform final checks. Operations in the Final Assembly Building lasted about 14 days. Once they were finalised the Ariane 5, complete with its payload, was ready to be rolled out to the launch zone.
