TAMPA, Fla. — Iridium Communications expects to get another five years out of its satellites, pushing out any need to complete a replenishment of the L-band connectivity constellation to at least 2035.
The 80 satellites in the operator’s second-generation Iridium Next low Earth orbit (LEO) constellation, launched from 2017-2019 apart from five spares lofted last year, came with a 12.5-year design life from their prime contractor, Thales Alenia Space.
Speaking during Iridium’s Feb. 15 quarterly earnings call, CEO Matt Desch said a recent engineering assessment “prompted us to update the constellation’s estimated life, which we now believe will perform well to at least 2035.”
Desch said he expects the satellites will ultimately be in service longer than 17.5 years, pointing to how those Thales Alenia Space built for its first-generation network ultimately lasted more than 20 years in LEO before running out of fuel.
The extended Iridium Next lifetime gives the Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) operator more flexibility over when to pull the trigger on ordering and launching a potential third-generation constellation, Iridium spokesperson Jordan Hassin said.
“And of course, eventually you want to upgrade the hardware in space, but this also gives us an opportunity to take advantage of the latest and greatest at the most favorable moment,” he said via email.
Revenues Iridium has under contract for the satellite’s hosted payloads, representing less than 2% of sales for the fourth quarter of 2023 and include the aircraft-tracking Aireon service, are fixed over the lifetime of the spacecraft.
However, an extended lifetime gives the company an opportunity to ultimately get more revenues out of the $3 billion constellation for services that include broadband, connectivity for monitoring and tracking Internet of Things devices, and a planned direct-to-smartphone business.
Iridium reported revenue up 10% year-on-year to $790.7…
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