Amazon announced Friday that it has signed a deal with SpaceX to deliver batches of its Project Kuiper satellites to low Earth orbit in 2025. SpaceX is undoubtedly Amazon’s biggest competitor as it moves into the satellite internet space, and already has a constellation of over 4,000 Starlink satellites deployed. It is also a rival to Blue Origin, the aerospace company founded by Jeff Bezos, which has its own rockets in development. But when it comes to launches, the speed and reliability of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket are unmatched.
The contract with SpaceX calls for three Falcon 9 launches, Amazon said in a blog post. The start is scheduled for mid-2025. Amazon plans to launch customer pilots for its Project Kuiper satellite internet service by the end of next year and will soon begin deploying the fleet that will support it. The company launched its first two prototype satellites in October. The company already has contracts in place for upcoming launches of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rocket, Arianespace’s Ariane 6 and Blue Origin’s New Glenn – all hit by development delays and potentially making their first between this year and next carry out flights.
Amazon said in its announcement that “the additional launches with SpaceX provide even more capacity to support our deployment plan.” The company said its Project Kuiper constellation will consist of 3,236 satellites, with at least half of them deployed by Must be operational by summer 2026 to comply with the FCC license.
Originally posted 2023-12-03 04:28:49.