With all three vehicles, Arianespace, the company that runs Kourou, will now be able to offer satellite operators a ride for any type of spacecraft to all kinds of orbit - from the low, pole-crossing orbits used by Earth observation missions, to the high, geostationary locations favoured by big telecommunications platforms.

BBC: Vega rocket set for maiden voyage

Its orbit will leave just a 400km-wide circle at the pole that is out of sight of its instrument.

BBC: Launch success for Esa's Cryosat-2 ice mission