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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Arianespace / ArianeGroup | ULA | Avio |
| Country | 🇪🇺 Europe | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇪🇺 Europe |
| Status | Active | Active | In Development |
| Vehicle class | Heavy | Medium | Small |
| Propellant | LH₂ / LOX (Vulcain 2.1 + Vinci) | RP-1 / LOX (RD-180); LH₂ / LOX (Centaur III) | Solid (P160C first stage) / LOX-methane (cryogenic upper stage) |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| First flight | 2024 | 2002 | 2027 |
| Payload to LEO | 21,650 kgas of [1]Ariane 62 (2 boosters) / Ariane 64 (4 boosters); 64 offers higher GTO capacity ↑ Best | 18,850 kgas of [1]401 configuration. Maximum 401/551 stretch to 20,520 kg. 551 max 29,420 kg (5-solid boosters). | — |
| Payload to GTO | 11,500 kgas of [1]Ariane 64 configuration. Ariane 62 delivers ~4,500 kg to GTO. ↑ Best | 8,900 kgas of [1]551 configuration (maximum performance) | — |
| Height | 56–63 mas of [1]56 m (Ariane 62) / 63 m (Ariane 64 with 4 solid boosters) ↑ Best | 58.3 mas of [1]401 configuration | — |
| Liftoff mass | 530–860 tas of [1]530 t (A62) / 860 t (A64) ↑ Best | 334 tas of [1]401 configuration without strap-ons | — |
| Success rate | 100%as of [2]8/8 missions through VA269 Amazon Leo (Jun 17, 2026, 36 sats on upgraded P160C boosters); Ariane 64 debut Feb 12, 2026 ↑ Best | 99.1%as of [2]108 full successes + 1 partial failure (NROL-30, Jun 2007 — payload still reached usable orbit) across 109 launches | — |
| Total flights | 8as of [2] | 109as of [2]No longer sold but still flying its backlog: ~8 launches remained as of Apr 2026 (6 Starliner + 2 Amazon Leo); most recent flight Amazon Leo LA-07 (May 29, 2026), ~7 remain ↑ Best | — |
| Cost / kg LEO | ~$7,500/kgas of [1]Estimate based on ~$115M A62 / ~$165M A64 list prices ↓ Cheapest | — | — |
| Summary | Europe's flagship launcher replacing Ariane 5. The Vinci re-ignitable upper stage enables multi-orbit missions and controlled deorbit. Primary customers: Amazon Kuiper, European government payloads, and ESA science missions. | ULA's workhorse since 2002 and the longest-serving active US rocket. Launched Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity), OSIRIS-REx, Solar Orbiter, Lucy, New Horizons, and the Boeing Starliner. Production ended in 2024 and ULA no longer sells the vehicle, but it continues flying a sold-out backlog of Starliner and Amazon Leo missions into the late 2020s. | The next evolution of ESA's Vega line: replaces the Zefiro-9 and AVUM+ stages with a single cryogenic LOX/methane upper stage powered by the new M10 engine, adding multi-orbit deployment flexibility. First flight is a stated target (2027), not yet flown. |
48 launch vehicles across 10 countries — active, retired, and in development — with primary-source citations from manufacturer user guides and agency press kits. Pure URL state: bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.