Firefly Alpha | Stairway to Seven
Firefly Alpha launched the Stairway to Seven mission for Firefly Aerospace from Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA on Mar 12, 2026 (UTC).
Launch pad
Space Launch Complex 2W · Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
Firefly Alpha | Stairway to Seven
Launched Mar 12, 2026 9:50:00 AMSuccess
1 object in orbit now
Flight direction
222° SW
measured from the launched orbit · inclination 123.1°
Flight path
First-stage drop zone (rough estimate)
Drawn 400–700 km downrange along the flight direction. Official hazard areas are published as NOTAMs and navigational warnings.
About the mission
Firefly Alpha's Flight 7 is a test flight and return-To-Flight for the launch vehicle after its April 2025 launch failure. It will test and validate key systems ahead of Firefly’s Block II configuration upgrade on Flight 8 that’s designed to enhance reliability and manufacturability across the vehicle. Flight 7 is the last flown in Alpha’s current configuration and will test multiple Block II subsystems, including the in-house avionics and thermal improvements, to gain flight heritage and validate lessons learned ahead of the full configuration upgrade on Flight 8. This launch also delivered a demonstrator payload for Lockheed Martin.
Mission description from Launch Library 2.
Objects from this launch still in orbit
- Launch time (your time zone)
- Thu, Mar 12 · 9:50:00 AM
- Status
- Success
- Launch provider
- Firefly Aerospace
- Rocket
- Firefly Alpha
- Mission type
- Test Flight
- Target orbit
- LEO
- Launch pad
- Space Launch Complex 2W · Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA