Amazon says Kuiper satellite production delayed; beta tests to start next year

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZNAmazon said Thursday that the production launch of its Kuiper Project satellites will be delayed and will begin in the fourth quarter, with trial testing scheduled for next year.

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Amazon CEO Steve Metair made the comments during the opening ceremony of Amazon’s satellite production facility in Seattle.

Production of the Kuiper satellites, which are intended to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, was scheduled to begin in the first half of 2024.

Despite the rivalry between Amazon and SpaceX, Amazon contracted with Elon Musk’s SpaceX in December to deploy its Kuiper satellites, using SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Amazon also has deals with Arianespace, Blue Origin, and United Launch Alliance — a joint venture between Boeing (BA) and Lockheed Martin (LMT) — to provide heavy-lift launch services for Project Kuiper.

In December, Amazon announced that it had successfully completed tests of an optical network of laser links between Project Kuiper internet satellites in low Earth orbit. In November, Amazon said it had achieved a 100 percent success rate on its initial test mission.

Amazon launched two prototype satellites in October on an initial test mission called ProtoFlight.

In 2020, Amazon received approval from the Federal Communications Commission to build and deploy a $10 billion satellite network to provide high-speed internet service to sparsely populated areas.

Amazon hopes to launch nearly 3,200 satellites into low Earth orbit and provide broadband internet to millions around the world.

(This story has been updated to change the first paragraph to say that the satellite production launch has been delayed.)