The UK’s first orbital rocket launch is set to blast off from the Shetland islands in October or November this year.
SaxaVord spaceport is preparing to host the first vertical launch of satellites from British soil. It comes after Spaceport Cornwall’s failed horizontal satellite launch — where a rocket blasts off from a plane — this month.
Scott Hammond, director of operations at SaxaVord, acknowledged that there is often uncertainty around timetables. However, he said a recent agreement with the German firm Rocket Factory Augsburg would mean engine testing begins in the summer.
He said: “Probably in July, we’re going to start full-stage testing . . . nine engines all firing for about three minutes. So that’ll be really, really impressive. I expect about four
