Ariane 5 production and integration operations: ten years of continuous efficiency and quality improvement

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SpaceOps Conferences 5-9 May 2014, Pasadena, CA SpaceOps 2014 Conference 10.2514/6.2014-1624 Ariane 5 production and integration operations: ten years of continuous efficiency and quality improvement David Iranzo-Greus 1 Airbus Defence and Space, 78130 Les Mureaux, France For the past ten years Ariane 5 has proved to be the world s most reliable commercial launcher for the benefit of the European Space Agency (ESA) and European national agencies and governments, launching their institutional and scientific missions as well as for commercial operators. With 59 consecutive successful launches for all Ariane 5 versions between 2003 and 2014, quality and efficiency have been demonstrated, meeting the expectations of ESA governments who financed its development. Airbus Defence and Space (Airbus DS) is the prime contractor for the manufacturing and assembly of the launcher, delivering to Arianespace a fully tested and integrated launcher in the Launcher Integration Building in Kourou, French Guiana. Throughout its production and integration sites in Europe and in Kourou, Airbus DS is managing a large industrial network, bringing together the most successful launcher on the market today. The success of the launcher has been built on the quality and the reliability of the operations performed for the manufacturing and the integration of the stages and the launcher. These operations are performed and managed by a lean and efficient team of engineers and technicians. Launcher integration and checkout operations duration in Kourou has been reduced by 20% in the past 7 years, down to a standard duration of 20 working days, and a further 10% decrease is foreseen in the near future. This reduction has been achieved thanks to: a rigorous supply chain management which has allowed improving the quality of the delivered elements and limiting the number of non conformances to be treated during stage and launcher integration; a solid definition of quality standards and procedures that are applied throughout the industrial process, from the suppliers up to launcher integration (where needed, these quality procedures have been reinforced, based on lessons learned from production and operations activities); an adaptation of the checkout tests performed to optimize the overall industrial process between Europe and Kourou in order to perform the most relevant technical verifications at the right moment; a thorough preparation of the operations in Kourou, aiming at minimizing launcher-specific operations, and systematically integrating lessons learned from previous integration campaigns. The previous points have automatically led to a reduction in the number of non-conformance reports during launcher integration operations, decreasing by a factor of 2 from 2003 to 2013. The remaining technical events are analyzed and treated in a fast and efficient manner in coordination between the operational team in Kourou and the support team in Europe. The role of the engineering teams is fundamental in supporting the production activities and operations, to guarantee the flightworthiness of the real hardware with respect to the qualified launcher definition. And of course, this increased quality in launcher integration has been shared with our customer, Arianespace, who has launched with success a large number of very calm flights. After each flight, telemetry is analyzed to confirm the perfect behavior of the launcher and identify and correct any potential non-nominal event. In this sense, ESA s Launcher Exploitation and Accompaniment Program (LEAP) contributes to maintaining the launcher in its qualified status. Airbus DS s experience and lessons learnt in stage and launcher integration operations on the Ariane 5 launcher are being implemented in the development for ESA of the Ariane 5 Midlife Evolution and Ariane 6 launchers. 1 Head of Launcher Engineering, Ariane 5 Exploitation Program, Space Systems, 51-61 route de Verneuil - 78130 Les Mureaux, France. 1 Copyright 2014 by Astrium SAS. Published by the, Inc., with permission.

Nomenclature A5ES = Ariane 5 with EPS storable propellant upper stage A5ECA = Ariane 5 with HM7-B cryogenic upper stage A5ME = Ariane 5 with Vinci cryogenic upper stage Airbus DS = Airbus Defence and Space, subsidiary of the Airbus Group ATV = Automated Transfer Vehicle BAF = Final Assembly Building (Bâtiment d Assemblage Final) BIL = Launcher Integration Building (Bâtiment d Intégration Lanceur) CNES = French Space Agency (Centre National d Etudes Spatiales) CSG = Guyana Space Center (Centre Spatial Guyanais) EAP = Ariane 5 solid boosters (Etage d Accélération à Poudre) EPC = Ariane 5 main cryogenic stage (Etage Principal Cryotechnique) ELA = Ariane Launch Area (Ensemble de Lancement Ariane) ESA = European Space Agency ISS = International Space Station LEO = Low Earth Orbit MPS = Ariane 5 solid rocket motor (Moteur à Propergol Solide) ZL = Launch Pad (Zone de Lancement) I. Introduction RIANE 5 is the European launcher currently putting into orbit more than half of the commercial A telecommunications satellites in the world. Besides this important commercial record, Ariane 5 responds to the European governments needs in terms of launching institutional payloads. This paper will initially present the current Ariane 5 configurations and the organization of the manufacturing and integration activities which take place throughout Europe and in French Guiana. Airbus Defence and Space organization, presented in paragraph III, has been set up to manage a large network of companies throughout the continent. These production and integration operations in Europe and in French Guiana have been optimized, as will be presented in paragraph IV. In the end, the results of the streamlining of the activities have been associated with quality improvement plans, leading to a significant reduction of non-conformance reports at all integration sites. This will be presented in paragraph V. Finally, paragraph VI will present how Airbus DS is using the lessons learnt from the exploitation of Ariane 5 today to improve and develop future launchers, the Ariane 5 Mid- Life Evolution and Ariane 6. II. Ariane 5 Launcher Definition Ariane 5 launcher is a three-stage launcher, consisting of two solid propellant boosters (EAP) around a central core including two liquid propellant stages. The lower liquid propellant stage is the EPC, propelled by the Vulcain 2 engine, burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. For the upper liquid stage, the Ariane 5 has currently two versions in service: Ariane 5 ECA and Ariane 5 ES. The first version, A5ECA, is the workhorse for most commercial missions, targeting GTO orbits for commercial telecommunications satellite operators, with a payload performance of more than 10 metric tons. This launcher version includes the ESCA upper stage, a liquid- Figure 1. Lift-off of Ariane 5 from Kourou, French Guiana 2

hydrogen and liquid-oxygen high performance stage, propelled by the HM7B engine, a long-lived engine with a long heritage going back to Ariane 1. The second version, A5ES, is today used to launch the European logistics vehicle ATV towards the International Space Station, with a lift-off weight of more than 20 metric tons. It is equipped with an EPS storable-propellant upper stage, propelled by the Aestus engine, burning MMH and N204. This same version is currently being adapted for the launch of Galileo satellites, the European navigation constellation. For both launchers, a Vehicle Equipment Bay (VEB) contains the on-board computers and other electronic equipment. On top of the launcher, one or two satellites are integrated for GTO missions on ECA, on their respective payload adaptors and including the SYLDA doublelaunch structure and the fairing. A. Assembling a launcher The different stages are assembled in different locations in Europe and French Guiana: 1) The EAPs solid propellant boosters are, for safety and cost reasons, manufactured and assembled directly in the European Spaceport in French Guiana by Europropulsion. Only the upper segment of the boosters is manufactured by Avio in Colleferro, Italy and shipped by boat to Kourou. 2) The EPC main cryogenic stage is assembled in Airbus DS facilities in Les Mureaux, France and shipped by boat to Kourou. 3) The ESC-A and EPS upper stages, together with the VEB, are assembled in Airbus DS facilities in Bremen, Germany, and shipped by boat to Kourou. 4) The fairing and payload adaptors are manufactured by RUAG in Switzerland and Sweden and by Airbus DS in Spain and also shipped Stage Integration Mission requirements Supply chain Products Launcher Integration In Kourou Technical Synthesis(Launcher File) Mission assessment, mission data, flight software Launcher acceptance Out of BIL KOUROU Figure 2. Ariane 5 ECA elements Airbus DS Figure 3. Ariane 5 production and integration process Airbus DS ariane 5 declares Flightworthiness 3 by boat to Kourou. With the arrival of all the elements in French Guiana, the assembly operations of the launcher starts in the Launcher Integration Building (BIL), where Airbus DS manages the integration of all the stages, up to the upper stage and carries out all the necessary testing to deliver a fully integrated and tested launcher to Arianespace, launch operator. Having assembled the hardware, Airbus DS is also responsible for the missionisation of the launcher, which includes performing the Mission Analysis studies and the

missionisation and testing of the flight software, which is then uploaded into the launcher onboard computer. After delivery to Arianespace, the launcher is transferred to the Final Assembly Building (BAF) where the satellites and payload adaptors are integrated under Arianespace responsibility on the launcher, followed by the payload fairing. After final assembly the launcher is transferred to the launch pad (ZL) for countdown operations, including cryogenic propellant filling, which take place a few hours prior to launch. III. Organizing a large industrial network Ariane 5 is a complex system, including 70 major components (known as Configuration Controlled Parts) coming from 35 major subcontractors from all over Europe. The major subcontractors are Snecma for the liquid propulsion systems and Europropulsion for the solid propulsion. The propulsion systems account for roughly half of the cost of the launcher. The organization implemented by Airbus DS for the management of the production process and operations is one where technical validation and quality are the key. From the procurement of parts up to the launch, technical and quality networks guarantee the flightworthiness of the launcher. During acceptance and incoming inspection of parts and subsystems from subcontractors, non qualities are identified and documented, and the technical network, including technical authorities for the given part, but also for the launcher, agree on the acceptability of the non-quality with respect to the launcher flightworthiness. The same process is applied on any non-qualities and anomalies that might arrive during stage or launcher integration activities, which are monitored by technical and quality teams. By the end of launcher integration activities, when the launcher is delivered to Arianespace for transfer to the Final Assembly Building, all technical events haven been treated and properly documented in the Launcher File, which tracks all events and operations and gives the flightworthiness of all launcher elements, including the flight software and the mission customization data. A. Technical Network The technical network includes engineers and experts with a very good knowledge of a part, a subsystem, a stage or the overall launcher. Depending on the criticality and potential impacts of a technical event, the treatment is performed at different levels of the network: 1) Technical Product Managers or Product Technical Authorities are engineers with expertise and good technical knowledge of the products/parts or subsystems coming from subcontractors. 2) Technical Authorities at stage and launcher level have an overall transverse knowledge of the stage and the launcher, including the interfaces with the ground installations and the launch operations. 3) The Launcher Consistency team assures the overall consistency of technical decisions, including technical, quality, qualification and programmatic issues. 4) The Chief Engineer is the highest technical authority for the Ariane 5 Exploitation Program, making all the decisions regarding major issues, and certifying to Arianespace the flightworthiness of the launcher before each flight. 5) The Technical Advisory Board is headed by the Airbus DS Chief Technical Technical Product Managers Supply Chain Products TPM Subco XX TPM Subco YY TPM Subco ZZ Stage integrations (AIT) TPM Stage EAP TPM Stage EPC TPM Stage UC TPM Stage EPS TPM Stage SYLDA Deliverables towards the Customer: Modification Files, Launcher File, Waivers, Operations Specifications, Synthesis note, Mission Analysis, Flight S/W, Technical Authorities Launcher System EPC Mechanical & Functional Perimeters EAP Mech. & thermal perimeter MPS Functional perimeter ESC Mechanical perimeter VEB / EPS Mechanical perimeter ESC Functional perimeter Upper Parts Launcher Electrical System and Software Flight S/W and ground means Flight Control Subsystem Telemetry Subsystem / Data Bases Safety and Power Subsystems Avionics Synthesis Software Architect Components Expert Development Authority Mechanical / System Development Authority Electrical Systems Figure 4. Ariane 5 Technical Network Launcher System Consistency Chief Engineer Flight S/W, measurement data base, operations specifications, spare parts, mission analysis ariane 5 Airbus DS Technical Advisory Board CTO and General Inspector Flightworthiness 4

Officer and includes the company s General Inspector as well as experts from different fields. Difficult technical issues, requiring a company-level decision, are raised to this board. B. Network The quality network guarantees that the Ariane 5 program quality rules are respected and that all technical events are treated with the appropriate rigor. But the people in this quality network also have a very Managers Supply Chain Products QM Subco XX QM Subco YY QM Subco ZZ Stages & Launcher integrations (AIT) QM Stage EPC & Launcher QM Stage EAP QM Stages UC & EPS/VEB QM SYLDA QM SEL & Mission Analysis QM Pyrotechnics Deliverables towards the Customer: Launcher File, Waivers, Synthesis note, Alerts, Audits, Assurance Plan QM Synthesis QM Lower Composite propulsion, Structures and Avionic Equipments QM Lower Composite Direct Materials QM UC Propulsion, Structures, Direct Materials QM EAP Stage QM EPC Stage QM SYLDA QM Flight Software QM Pyrotechnics Figure 5. Ariane 5 Network Launcher Production Management & Coherence Programme Manager Flight S/W, measurement data base, operations specifications, spare parts, mission analysis Launchers Directorate Airbus DS Board CTO/CQO, Board, General Inspector Flightworthiness solid technical knowledge of the launcher, thus contributing in a constructive manner to the decisions taken. Similarly to the technical network, and depending on the criticality and potential impacts of a technical event, the treatment is performed at different levels of the quality network: 1) Product Managers treat quality issues related to the supply chain elements, in cooperation with the Product Technical Authorities. 2) Synthesis Managers control all issues raised for a given stage during its integration activities and for the launcher integration activities. 3) The Ariane 5 Production Manager assures the overall consistency of the quality treatment for the production process, and works in close cooperation with the Launcher s Director, which has also a vision on development activities. 4) At company level, the Airbus DS Chief Officer and General Inspector guarantee the quality process for the entire company. IV. Optimizing European home-base and Kourou operations In 2004, when Airbus DS became responsible for the launcher integration activities in French Guiana, an optimization of the overall industrial chain was initiated. In order to optimize the launcher integration operations, analysis were performed on all testing activities initially performed at stage integration sites in France and Germany. The aim of these analyses was: 1) To assure that all tests performed at stage integration level would not require an additional test after launcher integration. If it was the case, the test at stage level was suppressed and, if needed, the test at launcher level was reinforced. 2) To assure that all potential risks during launcher and stage integration activities (for example cabling inversions) could be cancelled by an appropriate test later on in the process. 3) To transfer all tests initially performed at stage integration level to an «as-late-as-possible» test, in order to assure that the launcher is as close as possible to the final launch configuration. Launchers ariane 5 «A5 Network» This streamlining of the integration process was performed on all stages, leading to reduced cycle times and more robust operations. Launcher integration and checkout operations duration in Kourou has been reduced by 20% in the past 7 years, down to a standard duration of 20 working days, and a further 10% decrease is foreseen in the near future. Today launcher integration activities are prepared by the engineering and operations teams several weeks ahead of the start of each integration campaign: 5

1) A BIL Design Review meeting takes place, including engineering, operations, launcher management and quality teams. In this meeting all launcher-specific operations are identified by the engineering teams, linked to specific technical events, launcher modifications or mission specificities. Following this meeting, the operations teams prepare the corresponding operations description sheets, which will be implemented by the operators. 2) The sheets are reviewed by the same teams one week later, during the REPLICA (BIL Campaign Planning Meeting), to assure that all requested operations are properly prepared and that a solid planning of the operations is ready. 3) A few days prior to starting the integration campaign, the RPC (Campaign Preparation Review) meeting takes place with the Arianespace operations team, in charge of the ground infrastructure. The readiness of the ground installations to start launcher integration is confirmed and launcher-specific ground operations, if any, are validated. Launcher integration activities are carried out in the Launcher Integration Building (BIL) in Kourou with the following teams: 1) A Launcher Integration Manager (RIL) in Kourou is in charge of all activities, focal point for all other teams and decision maker. He/she is responsible for customer interfaces and manages the Launcher Delivery to Arianespace at the end of BIL activities. 2) A Launcher Manager (RQL) in Kourou is responsible for the treatment of all non-conformances that might arrive during integration operations. He/she assures the correct treatment of these technical events in coordination with the engineering and operations teams. 3) An Integration Operations Manager (ROI) in Kourou is in charge of the planning of all the operations and manages all the operators working in integration activities. Several teams, coming from Airbus DS sites in Germany and in France, are under his/her supervision: operators, inspectors and test managers. 4) Launcher Definition Engineers (RD) for each of the stages and for the launcher, are assigned to each campaign and work from the home-base in Europe or directly in Kourou to treat potential technical events that might arrive during the campaign, and to prepare operational specifications that might be required. Every evening, a planning meeting takes place in Kourou with all the teams, where all operations performed during the day and to be performed the next day Number of NCRs during AIT in Kourou (BIL) are listed. Issues are discussed in order to assure the planning of the coming operations. 5-launcher moving average Figure 6. Ariane 5 upper composite is lifted on top of the main stage during assembly operations in BIL L527/V170 (A5ECA) L529/V171 (A5ECA) L531/V172 (A5ECA) L533/V173 (A5ECA) L534/V174 (A5ECA) L535/V175 (A5ECA) L536/V176 (A5ECA) L526/V178 (A5GS) L537/V177 (A5ECA) L538/V179 (A5ECA) L530/V180 (A5GS) L528/V181 (A5ES-ATV1) L539/V182 (A5ECA) L540/V183 (A5ECA) L541/V184 (A5ECA) L542/V185 (A5ECA) L543/V186 (A5ECA) L545/V187 (A5ECA) L546/V188 (A5ECA) L547/V189 (A5ECA) L548/V190 (A5ECA) L549/V191 (A5ECA) L550/V192 (A5ECA) L532/V193 (A5GS) L551/V194 (A5ECA) L552/V195 (A5ECA) L554/V196 (A5ECA) L555/V197 (A5ECA) L556/V198 (A5ECA) L557/V199 (A5ECA) L559/VA202 (A5ECA) L560/VA203 (A5ECA) L544/V200 (A5ES-ATV2) L558/VA201 (A5ECA) L561/VA204 (A5ECA) L553/VA205 (A5ES-ATV3) L562/VA206 (A5ECA) L563/VA207 (A5ECA) L564/VA208 (A5ECA) L565/VA209 (A5ECA) L566/VA210 (A5ECA) L567/VA211 (A5ECA) L568/VA212 (A5ECA) L592/VA213 (A5ES-ATV4) L569/VA214 (A5ECA) L570/VA215 (A5ECA) L571/VA216 (A5ECA) L572/VA217 (A5ECA) Figure 7. Non-Conformance Reports during Launcher Assembly Integration and Testing in the Launcher Integration Building from 2003 to 2013. V. Towards Excellence The streamlining of operations in Europe and in French Guiana has been implemented together with successive quality improvement plans, aiming at taking advantage of lessons learnt and avoiding routine operations, which can lead to mistakes. After each launcher integration campaign, lessons-learnt sessions take place, where all technical events of the campaign are screened, causes are identified and actions are defined to improve the situation for the future. The results of this continuous improvement can 6

be seen in Figure 7, where the non-conformance reports during launcher integration activities is shown since Airbus DS took over responsibility for launcher integration. This level has been drastically reduced and continues to decrease: a factor 2 between the NCR s in 2003 and today. At the same time, figure 8 shows the launcherspecific operations. With the progressive industrialization of the products and operations, modifications and technical events have been reduced leading to a reduction of specific operations. Number of Launcher-Specific Operations L527 L529 L531 L533 L534 L535 L536 L526 L537 L538 L530 L528 L539 L540 L541 L542 L543 L545 L546 L547 L548 L549 L550 L532 L551 L552 L554 L555 L556 L557 L544 L558 L559 L560 L561 L553 L562 L563 L564 L565 L566 L567 L568 L592 L569 L570 L571 VI. And the results seen in flight The constant and drastic reduction in technical events during launcher production and integration activities has largely contributed to the 100% launch success rate seen by Arianespace on its Ariane 5 launcher since 2003. Not only reliability has been demonstrated, but also the launcher availability: in the past 2-and-a-half years, 14 flights have launched right on time with no launcher-dependent event causing a launch postponement. Not only all satellites have been delivered as expected, but the number of minor events seen in flight has also been in constant decrease. After each flight, Arianespace organizes the Level 0 analysis of flight information, where telemetry data is analyzed by Arianespace, Airbus DS and its subcontractors to confirm the correct behavior of all launcher elements and identify any unusual events that require immediate or long-term actions. Following this initial analysis the green light is given for the following flight and actions are taken for a more in-depth exploitation of events during a V170 V171 Minor flight events V172 V173 V174 V175 V176 V177 V178 V179 V180 V181 V182 V183 V184 V185 V186 V187 V188 V189 V190 V191 V192 V193 V194 V195 V196 V197 V198 V199 V200 V201 V202 V203 V204 V205 V206 V207 V208 Figure 8. Launcher-Specific operations during Launcher Assembly Integration and Testing in the Launcher Integration Building from 2003 to 2013. 7 Level 1 exploitation. Level 1 analysis is performed by Airbus DS and its subcontractors, thanks to the support of the European Space Agency, through its Launcher Exploitation and Accompaniment Program (LEAP). The outcome of these more-in-depth analyses can lead to modifications to increase the robustness of the launcher design. One of the outcomes of these continuous flight exploitations has been the Performance Improvement Plan, initiated by ESA. Among other things, this project has leveraged results of flight experience to refine the characteristics of all the propulsion systems of the launcher, reducing uncertainties and dispersions and therefore leading to a reduction in propellant reserves needed to guarantee the success of the mission. This, of course, has led to an increased performance, which is today higher than 10 tons, more than 1.5 tons above the initial performance at the beginning of Ariane 5 ECA exploitation. VII. Lessons learnt looking into the future As prime contractor for the production and development activities of the Ariane 5 launcher, Airbus DS is using the large experience and lessons learnt from the exploitation of the current Ariane 5 system to develop operationefficient systems for the future. Currently, two important Ariane or Ariane-related development programs are on-going in which production teams are involved, bringing the knowledge and experience of Ariane 5: Ariane 5 ME and Ariane 6. V209 V210 V211 V212 Figure 9. Minor flight events identified during Level 0 flight exploitation 2003 to 2013.

A. Ariane 5 ME With the increase in satellite masses and in order to increase the operational flexibility, allowing Arianespace to use any pair of satellites for any launch, the European Space Agency launched in 2008 the development of an improved version of Ariane 5: the Midlife Evolution. This version introduces a new cryogenic upper stage with increased propellant capacity and a new Vinci engine, developed by Snecma. This new stage leads to an increase of the launcher payload capacity by 2 tons and adds additional versatility with the reignition capability of the upper stage. Airbus DS is in charge of the development of this new launcher version, whose first flight is foreseen in 2018. The main lessons learned from Ariane 5 production and operations that are being used in the development of the new launcher version are: 1) Early industrialization of the new upper stage, starting at the Preliminary Design Review, to improve the future production phase and reduce the costs of exploitation. 2) Integration in the launcher design of the requirements of the new French Space Law, which impose certain constraints, for instance on the deorbitation of the upper stage. 3) Despite the increase of 2 tons in launcher performance and the added capability to perform missions with upper stage reignitions, the cost of Ariane 5 ME will remain the same as the current Ariane 5 ECA Figure 10. Ariane 5 ME new upper stage with Vinci version. engine, in-flight configuration B. Ariane 6 In order to drastically reduce the cost of access to space while adding flexibility by offering single-launch opportunities, the European Space Agency launched in 2012 preliminary development activities for a new launcher Ariane 6. The configuration of Ariane 6 is radically different from Ariane 5: four solid propellant stages constitute the first and second stages of the launcher (in a configuration 3+1), whereas the upper stage reuses the Ariane 5 ME s Vinci engine on an adapted cryogenic upper stage. The objective in cost reduction is mainly achieved by the series production of 4 identical solid propellant stages per launcher. Airbus DS is currently in charge of the system studies aiming at refining the launcher definition, including the production, assembly and launch operations. Therefore, the lessons learned from Ariane 5 are also being used to further improve and streamline operations for this new launcher. The main elements are: 1) Selection of a single-launch approach, facilitating access to space to all satellite customers while reducing the cost of exploitation. 2) New integrated design methods, using lean and concurrent engineering to accelerate and better master development activities. 3) Leaning out of the industrial set-up, with an improved application of geographical return constraints, allowing for a reduction of costs. Figure 11. Ariane 6 artist view VIII. Conclusion For the past 10 years, Ariane 5 has been successfully launching payloads to space. The most reliable commercial launcher in the world today, Ariane 5 also has a very good availability record, with on-time launches being the rule. This ever-improving quality has been achieved despite continuous cost reductions necessary to keep 8

Ariane 5 competitive in the global market and reduce exploitation costs. Streamlining measures implemented in the production process and operations have all been performed keeping quality as the number one target. As prime contractor for the launcher, Airbus DS has implemented an organization to manage the large European industrial network, putting quality at the center, relying on technical and quality networks for both hardware and software activities. The results seen during launcher integration operations and in flight speak for themselves: 100% success with operational non-conformances and particular flight events constantly decreasing. Looking into the future, Airbus DS is using the lessons learnt from the launcher exploitation for the development of the new launcher systems, Ariane 5 ME and Ariane 6. Acknowledgments This paper has been written thanks to the elements provided by the, Operations and Launcher Management teams at Airbus DS. The author would also like to thank our customers, the European Space Agency and Arianespace for relying on Airbus DS for the development and production of Ariane 5, as well as their contribution and advice on this paper. References 1 Poincheval, C., Vivet, E., Juhls, A., Albat, R., Resta, P. D., Bugnet, O., Adapted Ariane-5ME after the Ministerial Council 2012 IAC-13. D2.1.5, October, 2013. 9