Launch date of the 2nd Falcon Heavy flight repulsed

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The first flight of a Falcon Heavy rocket with a commercial payload will have to wait a little longer before taking off from the Kennedy Space Center.

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Artistic representation of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. Image credit: James Vaughan / SpaceFlight Insider

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Florida – The first flight of a Falcon Heavy rocket with commercial payload will have to wait a little longer before taking off from one of the world's most historic launch sites.

SpaceX was planning to send the Arabsat-6A satellite into orbit on April 7, 2019. However, the takeoff date is now pushed to 9 April at 18:36 EDT (22:36 GMT). The Falcon Heavy has only been launched once before, in February 2018.

When the gigantic rocket takes flight, it will begin its journey from the Kennedy Space Center 39A launch complex in Florida, which is the same one from which Apollo 11 was launched.

Arabsat-6A is a geostationary communication satellite of Saudi Arabia, built by Lockheed Martin and based on the A2100 bus. The satellite is launched to provide TV, Internet and telephone services in the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

The first Falcon Heavy launch featured a Tesla Roadster belonging to SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk. This automobile is "driven" by a manikin, nicknamed "Starman".

Arabsat-6A will not enter a heliocentric orbit as Starman did. The satellite will instead be placed in a geostationary orbit as part of the Arabsat-6G program.

Tagged: Apollo 11 Arabsat 6A Launch Complex Launch Center Kennedy Space Center Elon Musk Falcon 39A Lead stories Roadster SpaceX Starman Tesla

Jason Rhian

Jason Rhian has spent several years honing his skills doing internships with NASA, the National Space Society and other organizations. He has provided content to media such as: Aviation Week & Space Technology, Space.com, The Mars Society and Universe Today.