Europe’s big new rocket “Ariane 6” has blasted off on its maiden flight after successfully carrying out a series of trials in a debut flight on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

Watched by a Rafale fighter jet, Europe’s newest uncrewed rocket blasted off from French Guiana around 4 pm local time (1900 GMT).

Although not a commercial mission, the flight deployed three sets of micro-satellites for research purposes, prompting European space officials to declare the maiden trip a success.

Ariane 6 was developed at an estimated cost of 4 billion euros ($4.33 billion) by ArianeGroup, co-owned by Airbus and Safran. Its first launch, originally due in 2020, has been repeatedly delayed.