On 15 August 2020, Ariane 5 flight VA253 lifted off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana and delivered two telecom satellites Galaxy-30 and BSAT-4B, and the Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV-2), into their planned transfer orbits.

Also on this flight were four new notable technical modifications to Ariane 5: an onboard autonomous tracking kit called Kassav, vented nose cone from RUAG in Switzerland and new materials for a lighter upper stage and vehicle equipment bay (VEB) – the ‘brain’ of the launch vehicle.

These modifications will continue to be used on all Ariane 5 flights and also incorporated in the upcoming Ariane 6.

Flight VA253 was the 109th Ariane 5 mission.