Rocket Lab’s new “Hungry Hippo” payload fairing has been safely delivered to the company’s integration facilities at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) in Virginia.
The new rocket topper will cap Rocket Lab’s Neutron launch vehicle, which is still under development. The company was previously making progress toward a Q1 2026 debut of the new medium-lift rocket, but a rocket core stage failure Recent stress testing has put Neutron on a more uncertain timeline.
Neutron is Rocket Lab’s answer to venerable SpaceX hawk 9. The 141-foot (43 m) long, carbon composite launch vehicle will be capable of delivering up to 28,700 pounds (13,000 kg) of mass to low Earth orbit, compared to the Falcon 9’s 50,265 pounds (22,800 kg). Like the Falcon 9, the Neutron is designed for partial reusability.
The rocket’s Hungry Hippo fairing is a unique part of that reusable architecture, because, unlike other payload fairings, it remains attached to the launch vehicle rather than detaching to return through the atmosphere.
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The jaw-like mechanism opens like a clamshell to release the Neutron upper stage and payload for sustained flight, then closes after deployment while the rocket’s first stage slows down and maneuvers to land back on its launch range or on a Rocket Lab transport ship deployed at sea.
Neutron’s Hungry Hippo captive fairing has arrived at Launch Complex 3 in Virginia, ready to undergo checkout and pre-launch testing. pic.twitter.com/8yL26o5DU026 January 2026
The 46-foot (14-meter) fairing was delivered via barge and truck to the Rocket Lab facilities at MARS, after which Departure from the company’s California testing facility In December. Now that it has arrived at LC-3, the fairing will undergo pre-launch qualification testing while it waits for the neutron first stage.
“The arrival of Hungry Hippo is another step toward Neutron’s debut that will usher in a new era of commercial space access,” Rocket Lab. Said in an update On 26 January.
