Gilmour Space Technologies has announced a date for the maiden flight of Eris - the first Australian rocket designed and built for orbit.
The Gold Coast-based company said a launch window starting “no earlier than” 15 March had been decided following final airspace approvals and regulatory clearings from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) and Airservices Australia.
Adam Gilmour, co-founder and CEO of Gilmour Space warned that the first launch is always the hardest, saying that “it’s almost unheard of” for a company to reach orbit successfully on the first launch.
"Whether we make it off the pad, reach max Q, or get all the way to space, what's important is that every second of flight will deliver valuable data that will improve our rocket's reliability and performance for future launches,” he said.
Gilmour also said weather conditions, technical issues and other factors known as “scrubs” can delay launch times by hours to days, or even weeks.
He told the ABC that the March launch date could be delayed by Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
“We believe the effects on our site will just be high winds – that would cause us to pause or delay our launch,” he said.
"Safety is always the top priority. We'll only launch when we're ready, and when conditions are appropriate," said Gilmour.
Plans to launch a test rocket in May 2024 were halted by a delay in obtaining a launch permit from the Australian Space Agency.
However, the company made history when it secured the country's first Australian Launch Permit for Eris TestFlight 1 in November.
"This will be the first attempt of an Australian rocket to reach orbit from Australian soil," said Gilmour.
The announcement marks the culmination of years of manufacturing and innovation by the company that made history in March 2024 when its Bowen Orbital Spaceport in Abbott Point, North Queensland was granted the first orbital launch facility licence in Australia.
The location was chosen for its proximity to the equator and the sparse population density of local communities.
Gilmour added that Australia could now become one of only 6 countries to regularly launch rockets using their own technologies.
He emphasised that Australian-owned and controlled rockets create more high-tech jobs, and provide greater security, opportunity for economic growth, and technological independence.
“We now build rockets in Australia. And this is only the beginning."
The company is also backed by private investors including Blackbird, Main Sequence, Fine Structure Ventures, Queensland Investment Corporation, and superannuation funds like HESTA, Hostplus, and NGS Super.
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