The US Air Force is the first paying customer for a Falcon Heavy mission. The STP-2 mission has a number of objectives, including demonstrating the new rocket’s capabilities and launching several satellites.
The U.S. Air Force is targeting October for its Space Test Program 2 mission, known as STP-2, a spokeswoman for the Air Force Space Command said in an email. The military had said earlier this year that it was targeting June, but the date has been pushed back due to ongoing qualification testing and engineering review.
Elon Musk-led Space Exploration Technologies Corp. pulled off its first Falcon Heavy test flight in February, delivering the chief executive officer’s cherry red Tesla Roadster with a spacesuit-wearing mannequin at the wheel toward an Earth-Mars elliptical orbit around the sun.
