SpaceNews.com
• Sandra Erwin
Globalstar deployed all eight replacement satellites built by Rocket Lab and MDA Space, while Eutelsat completed the first rendez-vous for Europe’s IRIS² programme. Separately, Viasat selected Rocket Lab for a U.S. Space Force GEO satellite, and Finland’s ReOrbit launched a €4.6 million connectivity R&D programme.
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PlanetiQ completed a milestone with a $2.73 million NOAA award to provide commercial GNSS radio occultation and total electron content data. Separately, Viasat selected Rocket Lab to build a geostationary satellite supporting the Protected Tactical Satcom-Global program, underscoring demand for commercial space capabilities across civil and defense missions.
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Globalstar deployed all eight replacement satellites built by Rocket Lab and MDA Space, while Eutelsat completed the first rendez-vous for Europe’s IRIS² programme. Separately, Viasat selected Rocket Lab for a U.S. Space Force GEO satellite, and Finland’s ReOrbit launched a €4.6 million connectivity R&D programme.
Viasat reported $324 million in inflight connectivity revenue last quarter, alongside a record number of aircraft equipped with its service. However, the company’s shrinking installation backlog points to a potentially slowing pipeline for future aircraft additions and raises questions about longer-term growth.
Viasat CEO Mark Dankberg said the company has not abandoned Equatys, its direct-to-device mobile satellite service joint venture with UAE-based Space42. The partners still plan a constellation that could include co-owners, with securing satellite financing identified as the next step.
L3Harris Technologies confirmed the successful deployment of its first perimeter truss reflector aboard ViaSat-3 Flight 3. SpaceX launched the satellite, marking an on-orbit milestone for L3Harris’s reflector technology and the ViaSat-3 satellite program.
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SES will provide LATAM’s multi-orbit, electronically steerable antenna inflight-connectivity solution across more than 60 Airbus and Embraer twinjets, including its future E195-E2 fleet. The agreement comes as SES reports declining first-half revenue and adjusted EBITDA, while saying its Iris² deal is days from completion.
Viasat said in its 2026 annual report that, as of March 31, it had $291.4 million in satellite construction payments due over the next five years (through 2031). It also reported $509.8 million in future commitments to purchase satellite capacity from third-party fleet operators.
Viasat says it has demonstrated a satellite-enabled voice call capability integrated into a BMW Group vehicle platform, with the feature fully integrated into the infotainment system. The demonstration was shown during 5G Automotive Association (5GAA) Meeting Week in Munich, using the BMW iX3 platform as the commercial vehicle basis.
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