MAHIA, New Zealand — Rocket Lab has successfully launched a dedicated satellite in just 16 hours 42 minutes for the U.S. Space Force, kicking off the highly anticipated “Victus Haze” tactical exercise.
The mission, launched aboard a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 on the Mahia Peninsula on June 19, 2026; delivering the “Victus Haze Puma” spacecraft into a precise sun-synchronous orbit. The mission represents a major evolutionary leap for the military’s Tactically Responsive Space (TacRS) framework, moving from purely fast launches to live-action tactical maneuvering in the space domain.
The Clock: Breaking Launch and Activation Records
While traditional military satellite launches take months or years of meticulous scheduling, Victus Haze simulated a real-world crisis scenario demanding an immediate response to an “irresponsible” or hostile orbital threat.
Rocket Lab was placed on a heightened readiness posture by the Space Force’s Space Safari office before being given a sudden, unannounced alert order. The company shattered its official 24-hour response requirement:
16 Hours, 42 Minutes: The exact time it took Rocket Lab to integrate the payload, compute a trajectory to a previously classified orbit, update flight software, align global ground tracking networks, and launch the Electron rocket after receiving the official order.
37 Hours, 36 Minutes: The time it took Rocket Lab engineers to fully commission the spacecraft once in orbit—beating the Space Force’s 72-hour operational deadline by more than 34 hours.
“Victus Haze set out to demonstrate our ability to respond to irresponsible behavior on orbit under operationally realistic conditions, and we are doing just that, leveraging commercial partnerships to maximize flexibility and minimize cost,”
– Col. Bryon McClain, acting Space Force Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Space Combat Power
The Drill: An Orbital Game of Cat and Mouse
With Rocket Lab’s satellite successfully activated, the operational phase of the exercise is officially underway. Rather than executing static loops around Earth, the Space Force is initiating Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO).
Rocket Lab’s satellite will square off against Jackal-004, a tactical spacecraft built by Colorado-based aerospace startup True Anomaly. Jackal-004 was covertly launched into position on May 3 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare mission.
The Space Force confirmed that over the coming weeks, the two commercial spacecraft will engage in a variety of complex scenarios designed to test how rapidly the military can inspect, track, and counter unknown objects in space.
From Demonstration to Daily Operational Capability
Victus Haze marks the fourth and most sophisticated test under the Space Force’s TacRS program, aggressively building on the foundation set by 2023’s Victus Nox mission.
| Mission Factor | Victus Nox (2023) | Victus Haze (2026) |
| Primary Launch Partner | Firefly Aerospace | Rocket Lab |
| Launch Timeline | 27 Hours | 16 Hours, 42 Minutes |
| Core Objective | Rapid Launch & Insertion | Rapid Launch + On-Orbit Tactical Maneuvering |
| Spacecraft Interaction | Single Passive Satellite | Active RPO Engagement (Two Mock Adversaries) |
The ultimate goal of these exercises is to shift responsive space from an experimental gimmick into a standard, ready-to-deploy military doctrine. Pentagon planners argue that in any future peer-to-peer conflict, the ability to rapidly launch replacement satellites, deploy emergent sensors, or physically inspect suspicious adversary spacecraft on timelines measured in hours, rather than months will be a critical deterrent.
Space Systems Command confirmed on June 22 that both Rocket Lab and True Anomaly vehicles are fully healthy, communicating, and moving into position for their first face-to-face orbital engagement.