The Last ULA Atlas V Rocket May Have Launched in a Mission with Satellites as Payload

On July 2 at 6:30 AM (Italian time), a ULA Atlas V rocket took off, carrying 29 satellites for the Amazon Leo satellite constellation, which can begin an initial operational phase challenging SpaceX's much larger Starlink (but raising concerns about the sustainability for scientific observations of this approach). The LA-08 mission (Leo Atlas 8) successfully concluded with a launch from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The most interesting news, however, concerns the fate of this launch vehicle. In fact, it may have launched the last ULA Atlas V rocket carrying satellites as payload. There are still six rockets of this type, but they are currently assigned to launch missions of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, which is undergoing a costly and incomplete development program, making future missions uncertain in terms of timing.

The ULA Atlas V rocket, in its various configurations, debuted in 2002 and has completed 110 missions overall, with only one partial failure. A rather positive result but one that faces a higher launch cadence and operational costs when compared to SpaceX's Falcon 9. For this reason, ULA has planned the transition to Vulcan Centaur, which currently has a low launch cadence and has suffered from issues with the GEM 63XL boosters.

Melissa Wuerl (Director of Launch Systems at Amazon Leo) stated, "Atlas V played a critical role in the initial distribution phase for Amazon Leo, launching 224 satellites with a 100% success rate across all eight missions, and we are excited to build on this foundation with ULA as we transition to Vulcan. With hundreds of satellites ready for flight waiting at Cape Canaveral and a new dedicated vertical integration facility ready to support Leo Vulcan 1 and subsequent missions, we have a clear path to increase our launch and deployment cadence, helping us quickly expand network coverage following an initial service launch by the end of the year."

LA-08 was our final Atlas V mission with @ULAlaunch as we transition to its new, heavy-lift Vulcan rocket. Look back at the Leo Atlas era—from the inaugural launch that kicked off a full-scale deployment of Amazon Leo, to Leo Atlas 8, which brought our constellation to nearly.

One possibility is that if the Starliner program is halted due to costs and safety risks, other flights of a ULA Atlas V rocket may be destined to launch Amazon Leo satellites. Currently, there is no confirmation of this. NASA's Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a report stating that Starliner will not be able to transport astronauts before 2027, six years beyond the original deadline. Some of the issues have been resolved, but the situation is far from rosy. For this reason, the future of Starliner and consequently the last launches of Atlas V remains uncertain.