Vega family
Vega-C
Vega-C is a single-body rocket nearly 35 m high with that weighs 210 tonnes on the launch pad. As with Vega, its main elements are three solid-propellant stages, an upper stage powered by a reignitable liquid-propellant engine and a payload fairing. Vega-C's P120C first stage replaces Vega’s smaller P80 to provide a significant increase in thrust at liftoff. It is also used as boosters (2 or 4) for the Ariane 6 rocket.
Flights flown822 scheduled
Success rate87.5%7/8
Payload to LEO3,300kg
Cost per kg to LEO$14,545$48M per launch
Maiden flight2022-07-13
Peak year20264 flights
Vega-C is built by Avio S.p.A of Italy. Company background, funding, contracts and news for this operator are tracked on Space Index. It first flew on 13 July 2022.
Flight record
87.5% success rate7 of 8 flown · 1 failed
2022peak 2026 · 4 flights2026
First flight2022-07-13
Latest flight2026-09-15
Failures1
Consecutive successes6
Fastest turnaround87d 16h
Payload
| Low Earth orbit | 3,300kg |
|---|---|
| Sun-synchronous orbit | 2,230kg |
| Launch cost | $48M |
| Cost per kg to LEO | $14,545 |
Vehicle
| Stages | 4 |
|---|---|
| Length | 34.8m |
| Diameter | 3m |
| Launch mass | 210t |
| Liftoff thrust | 2,974kN |
| Maiden flight | 2022-07-13 |
| Reusable | No |
Variant lineage
| Configuration | LL2 launches | LEO kg | Maiden | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vega-C | 8 | 3,300 | 2022-07-13 | Active |
| Vega-C Block 2 | 0 | Retired |
Pads used
Orbits delivered
Sun-Synchronous Orbit25Low Earth Orbit3Elliptical Orbit1Medium Earth Orbit1
Compare
Launch history
| Date | Mission | Pad | Orbit | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-15 | Vega-C | Sentinel-3C & FLEX | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 2026-05-19 | Vega-C | Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Elliptical Orbit | Success |
| 2025-12-01 | Vega-C | KOMPSAT-7 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 2025-07-26 | Vega-C | CO3D & MicroCarb | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 2025-04-29 | Vega-C | Biomass | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 2024-12-05 | Vega-C | Sentinel-1C | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Success |
| 2022-12-21 | Vega-C | Pléiades Neo 5 & 6 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Failure |
| 2022-07-13 | Vega-C | LARES-2 (Maiden flight) | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Medium Earth Orbit | Success |
| TBD | Vega-C | IRIDE 1 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | IRIDE 2 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | KOMPSAT-6 & PLATiNO 1 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | CSG-4 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Sentinel CO2M-A | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | PLATiNO 2 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | FORMOSAT-8C | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | FORUM | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Amazonia-1B | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Pléiades Neo Next 1 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Sentinel CO2M-B | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | FORMOSAT-8D | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Sentinel-3D | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Altius | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | FORMOSAT-9A | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | EAGLE-1 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Low Earth Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C Block 2 | Space Rider | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Low Earth Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | SBG-TIR | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | ClearSpace-1 | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Low Earth Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | Harmony | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | FORMOSAT-9B | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
| TBD | Vega-C | TRUTHS | Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) | Sun-Synchronous Orbit | Scheduled |
Specifications from Launch Library 2 by The Space Devs, launch records from Space Index. Derived figures are computed here; see sources and method.
Further reading: Wikipedia · Operator page