Ariane 5 campaigns VA242, VA248, VA249
June 20, 2019 - In 2018/19 I had the opportunity to watch two launches of Ariane 5 from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Both times, I was lucky enough to see the launch from the "Toucan" viewing site. Toucan is the closest viewing site and situated at 5.15 km distance from the pad. It offers a beautiful view on the pad, the Ariane rocket, and its launch.All launch photos are distance shots from the Toucan site; I had no remote cameras at the launch pad. Nevertheless, each launch is differently dramatic in its own way, even when seen from the same site.
Following VA248, there will only be 14 Ariane 5 launches left before Ariane 6 will have fully taken over the business. We could visit one of these last launchers in the Integration building, preparing for the VA249 mission.
