06/03/2025 (Agence Europe) – The first commercial flight of Ariane 6 took place without a hitch on Thursday 6 March, placing the CSO-3 military satellite into sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of around 800 km (see EUROPE 13450/4). The CSO-3 (Optical Space Component) satellite completes the mini-constellation for observing Earth on behalf of the French Ministry of Defence. The CSO-1 and CSO-2 satellites were successfully launched in 2018 and 2020 respectively. The flight was originally scheduled for Monday 3 March, but was postponed due to a last-minute breakdown. Ariane 6 is a programme managed and financed by the European Space Agency (ESA). Ariane 6 will then be ramped up, with six flights scheduled for 2025 and eight for the following year. For further information, see: https://aeur.eu/f/fry (LC)