Lockheed Tests Rapid Launch Capability in Space Force Exercise

Lockheed tests rapid launch capability in Space Force exercise

Lockheed Martin has taken part in a U.S. Space Force exercise designed to test how quickly satellites can be prepared and launched during a crisis. The VICTUS DIEM exercise, conducted at Vandenberg Space Force Base, saw Lockheed Martin work with Firefly Aerospace to simulate rapid payload processing and launch operations under a compressed timeline, according to the company. As part of the demonstration, teams completed payload processing in und…

Responsive Launch and the Space Force’s On-Demand Requirement: Victus Diem and What Comes Next

The US Space Force called it Victus Nox, Latin for "conquer the night." On September 14, 2023, a Firefly Aerospace Alpha rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California carrying a space domain awareness satellite built by Boeing subsidiary Millennium Space Systems. What made the launch historically significant wasn't the payload or the rocket. It was the clock. Firefly had received its final launch orders 27 hours before liftoff…