Airbus Defence and Space will launch the ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle) -5 �Georges Lema�tre�. In the early hours of 30 July 2014, the ATV will take off on the European launcher Ariane 5 ES from the European spaceport in Kourou (French Guiana).It will set course for the International Space Station (ISS) to begin its mission, which will last about six months.
The ATV-5 is the last European space freighter to set off for the ISS. With a total weight of almost 20.3 tonnes, �Georges Lema�tre� has surpassed its four predecessors by being the heaviest payload ever launched into orbit by an Ariane. �Georges Lema�tre� is expected to reach the ISS mid August, where it will be received by an ESA astronaut.
Thanks to the success of the ATV missions, space European partners are in a position to provide system-critical elements for an American human mission. Airbus Defence and Space is developing, for example, the service module for the American human spacecraft �Orion-MPCV� for the European Space Agency (ESA).