The maiden flight of Ariane 5 ended in failure about 40 seconds after liftoff when the rocket veered off course and self-destructed, destroying the four ESA Cluster science satellites aboard. The cause was a software integer-overflow error inherited from Ariane 4 guidance code.
- Outcome
- Failure
- Orbit
- HEO
- Highly elliptical orbit
- Payload to orbit
- Did not reach orbit
- Flight
- 1st
- of 16 Ariane 5 G flights
- Date and time
- 4 June 1996, 12:34 UTC
- Rocket
- Ariane 5 G
- Builder
- ArianeGroup
- Launch site
- Ariane Launch Area 3, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
- Payload
- Earth Science
- Launches in 1996
- 37th of 77