Behind Rocket Lab’s 50th Launch: Realising Sir Peter Beck’s dream

Sir Peter Beck’s Rocket Lab just launched its 50th Electron rocket, making it the fastest commercially developed rocket to reach that milestone - beating SpaceX by a few months. Madison Reidy was given behind-the-scenes access to Friday’s celebratory launch.

A 6.13am lift-off schedule could not prevent Rocket Lab’s present and past employees, and their families, from rolling into Mission Control to count down its 50th rocket launch.

All were donning black company merchandise - even a baby wearing a “Future Mission Team” onesie.

“Go you good thing!” was shouted by an employee as Electron could be seen taking off on a livestream feed from Launch Complex 1 on the Māhia Peninsula, 100km south of Gisborne.

Cheering, applause, handshakes, back pats and an evident wave of relief followed, after it seamlessly reached low Earth orbit, separating stages and eventually deploying five payloads for French Internet of Things company Kineis.

Rocket Lab developed Electron itself. The 18m high, small-lift vehicle was unlike any other, made of carbon composite and powered by 10 three-dimensional printed engines.

The price to fly it was US$7.5 million ($12.2m) - a significant reduction from the former average price to access space of US$50m.

Rocket Lab tested it publicly for the first time in 2018, meaning it hit 50 launches within seven years, beating SpaceX and its Falcon 9 rocket to the milestone.

Customers to date included Nasa, the US Department of Defense’s National Reconnaissance Office, intelligence company BlackSky, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and a Japanese Earth imaging company iQPS.

But launching them did not get easier with higher frequency, according to CEO, founder and chief engineer Sir Peter Beck.

“Launch day is just as stressful as the very first rocket,” he told Markets with Madison.

“I struggle on launch day. Because customers are relying on you. Launch is never a low-sum game.”

Markets with Madison went exclusively behind the scenes of Rocket Lab's 50th Electron launch at its Mission Control in Auckland. Photo / Alyse Wright

One of Rocket Lab’s earliest employees, integrated operations manager Michael Pearson, who had been there for every Electron launch, agreed.

“It hasn’t really sunk in yet,” he said directly after the 50th launch.

“But, give it time, once I have a nap, maybe it’ll feel good.”

He’d been at Mission Control since 9pm the night before launch.

Pearson and Beck both recognised the work that went into producing the rocket, before it hit a launchpad.

“The team here at Rocket Lab is incredible. And I can put my hand on my heart now and say they are the best in the world, because we have the statistics to prove it.”

But the company with 2000 employees across New Zealand, the US and Canada was still in its infancy, according to Beck.

Rocket Lab founder, chief executive and chief engineer Peter Beck says launch day never gets easier for him. Photo / Carson Bluck

“Not trying to be arrogant or anything, but we’re playing to win here.

“We’ll continue to scale. We want to keep that graph line pointing skywards.”

Beck aimed to follow Electron’s pace with its new under-development rocket Neutron.

The 43m-high rocket could carry 13,000kg to low Earth orbit - 43 times that of Electron.

Its first flight had been pushed into 2025. Beck said it remained on track for that, from Launch Complex-3 in Wallops, Virginia.

Rocket Lab's bigger Neutron rocket under development could carry 43 times the weight to low Earth orbit, compared with Electron. Image / Supplied

Once Neutron was in play, the company would not retire Electron, despite it being a question Beck was asked often, including from his colleagues.

“Absolutely not. It is a critical part of the space industry right now.”

Taking a look down launch memory lane, Beck admittedly had one favourite mission to date.

“My dream as a kid in Invercargill was to go and work for Nasa. When we got to fly the first Nasa mission, the first Nasa payload, that was special.

“It was like ‘hmm, I didn’t get to work for Nasa but I got to fly their stuff’.”

While a celebration of its engineering excellence, Electron’s milestone also proved its commercial credibility.

“This year we sold the most amount of rockets we’ve ever sold, and next year is shaping up to be the same,” Beck said.

Rocket Lab's Electron rocket had reduced to price to access space to US$7.5 million, from previously up to US$50m, Peter Beck said. Photo / Trevor Mahlmann

Rocket Lab just scored US$23.9m in funding from the US Government under its Chips Act, and US$25.5m from the State of New Mexico.

“Reputation is earned, especially in the space industry. It’s earned with blood, sweat and tears.”

Although there was none of the latter or former evident at Mission Control for the 50th launch celebration, there was certainly sweat.

“Back to work,” Michael Pearson said within minutes of the “No Time Toulouse” mission’s completion.

Such “pure grit and determination” was something Beck had ingrained in his company from the beginning.

“Don’t underestimate being the underdog,” he said.

“We were never the pre-ordained winner of the small launch race.”

Go exclusively behind the scenes of Electron’s 50th launch with Peter Beck and the Rocket Lab team in today’s episode of Markets with Madison above.

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Madison Reidy is host and executive producer of the NZ Herald’s investment show Markets with Madison. She joined the Herald in 2022 after working in investment, and has covered business and economics for television and radio broadcasters.