Photos: Gantry retracted from Atlas 5

United Launch Alliance has granted “flight clearance” for its workhorse Atlas 5 rocket to resume satellite deployments after linking an errant valve with the fuel usage crunch on its most recent mission and tweaking subsequent vehicles.

Plans to launch a Navy communications satellite aboard an Atlas 5 rocket early Monday could be interrupted by Tropical Storm Erika, expected to strengthen into a hurricane, as the cyclone puts its sights on Florida.

A ULA Atlas 5 rocket is set to launch no earlier than 2 p.m. EDT (1800 UTC) on Friday, Oct. 6. It will sent up two prototype satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite internet constellation.