List of Electron launches



Electron is a two-stage small-lift launch vehicle built and operated by Rocket Lab. The rocket has been launched to orbit 49 times with 45 successes and four failures. A suborbital version of the rocket, HASTE, has been successfully launched one time.

The first flight, known as "It's a Test", launched on 25 May 2017. The mission failed due to a glitch in communication equipment on the ground. Successful follow-on missions, including "Still Testing", "It's Business Time" and "This One's For Pickering", delivered multiple small payloads to low Earth orbit. Flight 26 was the first Electron flight to attempt a full catch recovery using a mid-air helicopter catch. "Scout's Arrow" was the first suborbital launch of the rocket.

In July 2019, Rocket Lab expected to have launches every two weeks in 2020. In June 2020, with a new Electron launch vehicle built every 18 days, Rocket Lab was planning to deliver monthly launches for the remainder of 2020 and into 2021, including the company's first launch from Wallops LC-2 in 2023 and a mission to the Moon for NASA aboard Electron and Rocket Lab's spacecraft bus platform Photon in 2022.

2017–2018
Electron launched for the first time in May 2017, but the rocket was destroyed by the range safety officer after a telemetry loss, which was later attributed to a ground software failure. Electron experienced its first successful launch in January 2018, and launched their first mission for NASA in December 2018.

2019
Electron launched 6 times, all successfully, in 2019. First launch for the U.S. Air Force in May.

2020
First launch for the National Reconnaissance Office in January 2020.

First launch of Photon kickstage in August 2020.

2021
First launch for US Space Force in July 2021.

Planned launches
Per the Q3 2023 investor presentation, there are currently 2 HASTE launches planned for 2024, one in Q3 and one in Q4.