Mission Status
Birds of a Feather
Last Updated: 1 hour ago
SUCCESS
Orbit Achieved
U.S. Space Force
Vehicle
Electron
Launch Site
LC-1A
Orbit
Low Earth Orbit
Profile
Government/Top Secret
Friday, January 31, 2020 02:56 AM UTC Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand
Source: RocketLabCorp
Mission State
Schedule
Date and time on file
This mission currently has a dated launch window in the tracker.
Coverage
Official livestream linked
The primary watch link points to an official Rocket Lab source.
Name Origin
AI
Represents the US–NZ bilateral partnership: mission patch shows a kiwi (NZ) and eagle (US) side by side. First NRO mission ever launched from foreign soil, making the "birds of a feather" symbolism explicit.
"Birds of a Feather"
Mission Overview
This is a dedicated launch for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). The contract was awarded under Rapid Acquisition of a Small Rocket (RASR) program.
Technical Details
Vehicle
Electron
Rocket Lab launch vehicle
Launch Site
Launch Complex 1A
LC-1A · Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand
Target Orbit
Low Earth Orbit
Planned deployment regime
Mission Profile
Government/Top Secret
Mission architecture
Payload Mass
Classified
Customer
U.S. Space Force
Mission customer