Amazon has hundreds of flight-ready satellites waiting in Florida to join its low-Earth orbit Internet constellation, a company official said Tuesday. Steve Metayer, vice president of Amazon Leo Production Operations, confirmed the satellites are built and stored in a payload processing facility, with the company currently manufacturing several satellites daily. The backlog comes as Amazon faces a launch bottleneck, with its primary launch provider Atlas V nearing retirement after one remaining mission. Amazon's next deployment will occur Wednesday at 7:53 am ET, when an Ariane 64 rocket launches 36 Amazon Leo satellites from French Guiana. The company booked launches on three new rockets four years ago to deploy its constellation, but only Arianespace has delivered missions so far this year.
Metayer made the comments during a teleconference with reporters on the eve of the company's next mission. The Ariane 64 rocket will launch three dozen Amazon Leo satellites into orbit from a spaceport in French Guiana, with liftoff targeted for 7:53 am ET (11:53 UTC) on Wednesday.
Arianespace Delivers Two Launches While New Glenn and Vulcan Remain Pending
France-based Arianespace has emerged as a critical partner for Amazon, which to date has launched 331 satellites, with the majority carried on Atlas V rockets operated by United Launch Alliance. Amazon has just one more mission booked on Atlas V, as the vehicle is slated for retirement.
Four years ago, Amazon booked rides on three large new rockets: 18 launches on the Ariane 6 rocket, 12 launches on Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket with options for 15 additional launches, and 38 launches of United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket. Of these new rockets, only Arianespace has delivered so far, with two launches completed this year, another on Wednesday, and more to come. Neither New Glenn (also owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos) nor Vulcan has launched Amazon satellites yet.
"As for Arianespace, they have definitely stepped up," Metayer said. "They're very reliable on their manifest dates, and they're very reliable and safe on their insertions into orbit. So we definitely would continue to look forward to the next 16 launches with them on our existing contract, and we see them being a player long-term beyond that."
FAQ
How many Amazon satellites are currently waiting to launch?
Amazon has hundreds of flight-ready satellites sitting in a payload processing facility in Florida. Steve Metayer, vice president of Amazon Leo Production Operations, confirmed the satellites are built and waiting for trips to orbit, with the company currently manufacturing several satellites daily.
Why does Amazon have a satellite launch backlog?
The backlog exists because Amazon's primary launch provider, the Atlas V rocket operated by United Launch Alliance, is nearing retirement with only one remaining Amazon mission scheduled. Of the three new rocket providers Amazon contracted four years ago, only Arianespace has delivered launches this year, while Blue Origin's New Glenn and United Launch Alliance's Vulcan have not yet launched Amazon satellites.
How many Amazon Leo satellites have launched so far?
Amazon has launched 331 satellites to date, with the majority carried on Atlas V rockets. The company has completed two Ariane 6 launches this year, with a third mission scheduled for Wednesday at 7:53 am ET that will deploy 36 additional satellites.
