Rocket Lab Sends HawkEye 360’s Cluster 16 Into Orbit on 98th Electron Flight

Rocket Lab launched three HawkEye 360 satellites from New Zealand early Friday, placing Cluster 16 in low Earth orbit on Electron’s 98th flight. The cluster will provide dedicated capacity for an undisclosed customer supporting defense, intelligence and security missions. Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 at 3:11 a.m. ET (0711 UTC) Friday, Oct. 23. The satellites reached an orbit 520 kilometers above Earth at a 97-degree inclination. The flight was Rocket Lab’s 19th launch of 2026 and its third Electron mission dedicated to HawkEye 360. The three satellites made up Cluster 16.

Source: TokenPost