Boeing’s Delta 3 Rocket Explodes After Inaugural Launch

Boeing Co.’s powerful new rocket ended its $225-million maiden mission in a fiery instant late Wednesday, exploding off the coast of Florida shortly after liftoff and destroying the commercial satellite it was to carry to space.

The spectacular failure of the unmanned Delta 3 came one minute and 20 seconds after its 9:17 p.m. EDT launch, just as the 12-story rocket was to begin jettisoning six of its nine strapped-on boosters.

For Boeing, the explosion is a blow to its effort to expand its commercial launching business, as future launches could be delayed and potential customers are likely to be scared off while the company investigates the explosion’s cause.

The disappointment will be especially keen in Southern California, where workers in local plants built the satellite and much of the rocket.

“We have lost the signal from the Delta 3,” launch commentator Greg High said as the rocket disintegrated.

A large piece of burning debris landed in the Atlantic Ocean and exploded with a mushroom cloud that lit the horizon.

Boeing had no explanation for the accident, although long-range cameras showed the rocket seeming to tip over before erupting in flames.

“It’s too early to say exactly what has happened. It simply appears that we have had an explosion of some sort,” High said.

The mission from Florida’s Cape Canaveral had been delayed for two days because of Hurricane Bonnie, and Boeing was eager to get the rocket off the launch pad before Hurricane Danielle threatened a crucial tracking station on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean.

Boeing employees in Huntington Beach and Monrovia built Delta 3 rocket parts and electronics, while Boeing’s Rocketdyne unit in Canoga Park built the rocket’s main engine.

The communications satellite, Galaxy 10, was built by Hughes Space & Communications in El Segundo. It is owned by PanAmSat of Greenwich, Conn., and was to beam television channels to cable providers in the United States and the Caribbean once in orbit.

In pre-launch interviews, Boeing representatives proudly pointed out that inaugural flights of the various Delta rockets have always launched with real payloads--not “dummy” satellites as is common among other rocket makers testing a new design.

The rocket was designed to carry more than double the satellite weight of the workhorse Delta 2 and help Boeing tap into the growing market for heavier commercial satellites.

Boeing had booked 18 launch orders for its newest rocket, including 13 for satellites built by Hughes.