Editing Ariane 4 (section)

=== Further development ===
For the V50 launch onwards, an improved third stage, known as the ''H10+'', was adopted for the Ariane 4.<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|page=183}} The H10+ third stage featured a new tank, which was {{cvt|26|kg|lb}} lighter, {{cvt|32|cm|in}} longer, and contained {{cvt|340|kg|lb}} more fuel, which raised the rocket's overall payload capacity by {{cvt|110|kg|lb}} and increased its burn time by 20&nbsp;seconds.<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|page=183}}

Even prior to the first flight of the Ariane 4, development of a successor, designated as the [[Ariane 5]], had already commenced.<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|pages=184-185}} In January 1985, the Ariane 5 had been officially adopted as an ESA programme. It lacked the high levels of commonality that the Ariane 4 had with its predecessors, and had been designed not only for launching heavier payloads of up to {{convert|5.2|t|lb}} and at a 20% cost reduction over the Ariane 4, but for a higher margin of safety due to the fact that the Ariane 5 was designed to conduct crewed space launches as well, being intended to transport [[astronaut]]s using the proposed [[Hermes (spacecraft)|Hermes space vehicle]].<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|page=185}} Development of the Ariane 5 was not without controversy as some ESA members considered the more mature Ariane 4 to be more suited for meeting established needs for such launchers; it was for this reason that Britain chose not to participate in the Ariane 5 programme.<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|page=186}} For some years, Ariane 4 and Ariane 5 launchers were operated interchangeably; however, it was eventually decided to terminate all Ariane 4 operations in favour of concentrating on the newer Ariane 5.<ref name="harvey-2003" />{{rp|page=193}}