AirInsight
• Addison Schonland
Delta Air Lines has chosen Amazon’s Leo satellite network to power its next-generation in-flight Wi-Fi, opting for the service over SpaceX’s Starlink. The decision positions Amazon’s emerging connectivity network as a competitor in airline broadband and gives Delta a different technology path from United.
Project Kuiper
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Delta Air Lines has chosen Amazon’s Leo satellite network to power its next-generation in-flight Wi-Fi, opting for the service over SpaceX’s Starlink. The decision positions Amazon’s emerging connectivity network as a competitor in airline broadband and gives Delta a different technology path from United.
Ukraine is asking Washington to sanction several Russian entities it says are helping develop Rassvet, a domestic satellite network intended as an alternative to SpaceX’s Starlink. The appeal underscores the network’s strategic significance and Kyiv’s effort to constrain Russia’s access to space-based communications capabilities.
High activity
Beyond Gravity is doubling production capacity for satellite dispensers as Amazon Leo accelerates deployment of its low-Earth-orbit constellation. The expansion highlights the manufacturing scale-up required to support Amazon’s planned satellite network and the suppliers positioned to serve it.
Amazon Leo will enter Uzbekistan through an agreement with UZ-SAT to provide internet connectivity to underserved areas. The partnership marks the satellite internet provider’s expansion into the Uzbek market and could extend broadband availability beyond the reach of existing terrestrial infrastructure.
Valour Consultancy forecasts that Amazon Leo, Amazon’s satellite connectivity network, will serve more than 5,000 commercial and business aviation aircraft by 2035. The projection points to a potentially significant aviation market for satellite-enabled onboard connectivity over the next decade.
High activity
SpaceX has moved Starship Flight 14 to no earlier than Sept. 28, pending regulatory approval, after initially targeting Sept. 22. The roughly 10-hour mission would be Starship’s first orbital flight and attempt to deploy 26 V3 Starlink satellites, marking a major test of the vehicle’s launch and in-space operations.
High activity
Amazon Leo has expanded its Arianespace partnership to 24 contracted Ariane 6 launches, while the European Launcher Challenge awards €544 million to three rocket developers. An ICEYE-Arianespace agreement and proposed Airbus-Leonardo-Thales satellite merger plans further underscore Europe’s push for independent space access and industrial scale.
High activity
Arianespace announced orders for 10 additional Ariane 6 launches, including six linked to Amazon’s low Earth orbit satellite deployment plans, while ICEYE agreed to evaluate the rocket for sovereign SAR missions. Separately, NASA added Relativity Space’s Terran R to its NLS II launch-services contract.
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