KYIV. Nov 8 (Interfax-AVN) - The first launch of a European Vega delivery vehicle from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana, Latin America, which has been planned for the first quarter of 2011, may be delayed until the end of next year, a source in Ukraine's aerospace industry told Interfax.
As the Vega launch date is uncertain, negotiations on the delivery of fourth stage engines will not start before December, Yuzhnoye General Designer Volodymyr Shnyakin said.
Yuzhnoye and Yuzhmash agreed on designing and building the engines with Italian Avio SpA in February 2004.
"We are testing the engine to order of Italian Avio SpA and the European Space Agency (ESA)," Shnyakin said.
The Vega project involves Italy, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Italy funds 65% of the program via the Italian Space Agency.
The light rocket will put satellites of up to 1,200 kilograms to solar synchronous orbits of 1,200 kilometers or satellites of up to 1,500 kilograms to polar orbits of 700 kilometers. The rocket will have three solid fuel stages and one liquid fuel stage. It will be 50 meters tall and have the takeoff weight of 130 tonnes.