Project Kuiper's 3,000+ Satellites to Launch Aboard 83 Rockets Over Next 5 Years

Amazon has struck an agreement with French space launch provider Arianespace, Blue Origin, and the United Launch Alliance for their recently announced Project Kuiper satellite constellation. 

The surprising contract broke records for being the biggest commercial procurement of launch vehicles in history, purchasing the heavy-lift capacity required in order to deploy the Kuiper constellation of 3,236 satellites in low Earth orbit. The system will provide global broadband access once completed, with the full constellation expected to deploy between 83 launches over a 5-year period. 

The launches will integrate a large portion of the space providers throughout the US, bringing together suppliers from 49 states to help develop and manufacture the next-gen heavy-lift launch vehicles from Blue Origin and United Launch Alliance. Arianespace will use their European network to produce its future Ariane 6, expected to launch for the first time by year's end. The deal includes 18 of Ariane 6 as the order stands, with 12 slated to take flight on Blue Origin's New Glenn. Should they need them, Amazon retains 15 additional option slots with Blue Origin. The Alliance has the biggest share, with 38 launches to be completed using their Vulcan Centaur. 

Project Kuiper is chasing the popular connectivity ideal of high-speed, low-latency broadband internet service through a distribution of satellites, providing consistent service to "a wide range of customers, including individual households, schools, hospitals, businesses, government agencies, disaster relief operations, mobile operators, and other organizations working in places without reliable internet connectivity." Amazon remains uniquely suited to the endeavor, with extremely deep pockets and a thriving logistics infrastructure all on the rise, not to mention plenty of motivation to expand their prime subscription customer base. 

“Project Kuiper will provide fast, affordable broadband to tens of millions of customers in unserved and underserved communities around the world,” said Dave Limp, an exec from Amazon's devices & services division. “We still have lots of work ahead, but the team has continued to hit milestone after milestone across every aspect of our satellite system. These launch agreements reflect our incredible commitment and belief in Project Kuiper, and we’re proud to be working with such an impressive lineup of partners to deliver on our mission.”

“Securing launch capacity from multiple providers has been a key part of our strategy from day one,” said Rajeev Badyal, vice president of technology for Project Kuiper at Amazon. “This approach reduces risk associated with launch vehicle stand-downs and supports competitive long-term pricing for Amazon, producing cost savings that we can pass on to our customers. These large, heavy-lift rockets also mean we can deploy more of our constellation with fewer launches, helping simplify our launch and deployment schedule. We’re excited to move one step closer to connecting residential, business, and government customers around the world.”

FMI: www.amazon.com