Launch Services from Australia

Southern Launch is Australia’s commercial launch company operating two launch sites in South Australia: Koonibba Test Range (near Ceduna, for suborbital launches) and Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex (near Port Lincoln, for small orbital vehicles). The company provides launch site operations, range safety, telemetry, and logistics support to launch vehicle customers seeking access to Southern Hemisphere launch azimuths.

Koonibba Test Range is active for suborbital launches, having conducted multiple sounding rocket campaigns including the HyImpulse Technologies SR75 hybrid rocket tests in 2023. Whalers Way is Southern Launch’s orbital site, targeting small launch vehicle operators including Gilmour Space Technologies (Eris) as its primary customer.

South Australia’s geography provides access to a wide range of orbital inclinations from equatorial through polar SSO, with clear ocean launch corridors to the south and east. Southern Launch represents a key part of Australia’s new-space strategy, enabling domestic launch capability for government and commercial satellite operators.