Edinburgh / Forres, 16 February 2022. – Orbex announced that Orbex LP1, the first rocket launchpad constructed in the UK for more than 50 years, is now in place at the Orbex test site in Kinloss, Scotland.
LP1 was manufactured by a Scottish company specialising in marine and lifting equipment, the Motive Offshore Group. The new launchpad was built and tested to meet strict international standards. After an 80-mile trip following manufacturing, the 40-tonne launchpad was crane-lifted into place at the launch site.
The platform will support the testing of Orbex’s microlauncher, Prime, designed to transport small satellites to low Earth orbit.
It will also enable the launch operations team to test launch procedures like rollout, strongback erection and fuelling procedures.
The rocket will eventually launch from the world’s first carbon neutral spaceport, Space Hub Sutherland in the North of Scotland. Orbex submitted its application to the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for a launch licence earlier this month.
