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SES delays O3b mPower satellite launches

SES’ launch of its upcoming O3b mPower satellite constellation has been pushed back.

First reported in SpaceNews, the company said it now expects to launch its O3b mPower network later in 2023 than previously planned.

Four of the six O3b mPower broadband satellites that SES had planned to launch this year with SpaceX won’t be ready until early 2023.

SES CEO Steve Collar said delays have pushed the constellation’s service debut from the second to the third quarter of 2023 as the Boeing-built satellites needed more time than expected to be tested and prepared for launch.

First announced in 2017, the first of the 11 machines were originally set to launch in 2021 but faced delivery delays. Satellites 1 and 2 are currently due to launch in December 2022, while satellites 3 & 4 and 5 & 6 are set for two launches in Q1 2023. Satellites 8 through 11 are due for launch across later in 2023 and into 2024.

Earlier this year Telesat said it was to decrease size of the upcoming Lightspeed satellite fleet by a third due to supply chain issues and inflation costs. DatacenterDynamics

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