ULA Vulcan Fails in Flight, Destroying 40 Amazon Leo Satellites
Vulcan's first full mission failure since ULA formed in 2006 deals a setback to Amazon's Starlink rival and grounds the rocket pending an inquiry.
A United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket malfunctioned about 10 minutes after liftoff Sunday and failed to reach orbit, destroying 40 satellites for Amazon Leo, the Seattle company's planned challenger to SpaceX's Starlink internet service.
It was ULA's first total mission failure since the Boeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture was formed in 2006, Spaceflight Now reported. The rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 12:40 p.m. ET (9:40 a.m. PT) after two days of delays, according to GeekWire.
What went wrong
"Based on data received by our Launch Director, we confirm that the Vulcan vehicle launched from Space Launch Complex 41 ... suffered an anomaly 10 minutes into the flight and failed to deliver the Amazon mission to orbit," ULA said in a statement after liftoff.
"We will work closely with our customer and other appropriate organizations to find the cause, determine the appropriate corrective action and return to flight as quickly as possible."
The anomaly occurred during the burn of the Centaur upper stage, Spaceflight Now reported. The rocket's six solid rocket boosters, made by Northrop Grumman and the source of problems on two earlier Vulcan flights, appeared to perform normally. The first stage's two BE-4 engines, built by Blue Origin, appeared to fire longer than expected. ULA has not identified a cause.
Sunday's flight was only the fifth for Vulcan and its first in nine months.
Striking at Amazon's Starlink rival
The mission was the first of 38 Vulcan flights Amazon has purchased for its Leo constellation. Before Sunday, Amazon had launched 396 satellites on 14 missions since April 2025. Vulcan was slated to carry more than 1,500 of Amazon's first-generation satellites.
Amazon Leo said in a post on X that "there is risk with any launch, and that's especially true for inaugural missions like LV-01," adding that ULA "has been a trusted partner."
The failure will ground Vulcan while engineers review telemetry, delaying Amazon Leo's expansion and ULA's return to flight.