The inaugural launch of the European Space Agency’s Ariane 6 rocket has been set for early July, the ESA announced on Tuesday, according to the Brussels Times.

Initial forecasts in November 2023 had suggested that lift-off from Kourou, French Guiana, might take place sometime between mid-June and late July. A more precise launch date will be declared during the ILA Aerospace Exhibition in Berlin (5-9 June), the agency said in a press release.

The final launch date will depend on potential technical and weather-related uncertainties. However, a launch campaign group that started reporting on its progress in April considers it to be “on track,” the ESA reported.

By late April, the assembly of the Ariane 6’s core stage – including the primary and upper stages, along with the auxiliary boosters – had been completed on the ELA4 launch pad at the Guiana Space Centre (CSG).

According to the press release, the rocket will carry 11 “passengers,” including miniature satellites and scientific experiments.

Ahead of the launch, the final examination of the rocket and the Ariane 6 launch system – the ‘qualification review’ – will be concluded in mid-June.

Originally scheduled for 2020, the inaugural flight of the Ariane 6 rocket – designed to compete with the American SpaceX – has seen numerous delays due to Covid-19 and developmental challenges.

Europe, in the meantime, has been without its own access to space since the Ariane 5 launcher's last flight, in July 2023.