United Launch Alliance successfully launched the initial 27 satellites for Amazon's Project Kuiper broadband constellation on April 9th. This launch, designated KA-01 (Kuiper Atlas 1), marks a significant milestone, albeit approximately a year behind the original schedule, as Amazon races to meet its deployment deadlines. The launch took place from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, using an Atlas V rocket.
These satellites boast considerable improvements over earlier prototypes, featuring enhanced phased array antennas, processors, solar arrays, propulsion systems, and optical inter-satellite links. Successful prototype testing in orbit boosted Amazon's confidence to begin deploying operational satellites, manufactured in Kirkland, Washington, during the first half of 2024. Initial beta trials with potential customers like Verizon and Vodafone were anticipated for later that year, but have been pushed to 2025. Amazon is bound by FCC licensing regulations to deploy half the constellation by July 2026 and the remainder by July 2029.
“We’ve done extensive testing on the ground to prepare for this first mission, but there are some things you can only learn in flight, and this will be the first time we’ve flown our final satellite design and the first time we’ve deployed so many satellites at once,” Project Kuiper vice president Rajeev Badyal stated in a blog post. “No matter how the mission unfolds, this is just the start of our journey, and we have all the pieces in place to learn and adapt as we prepare to launch again and again over the coming years.”
KA-01 represented the heaviest payload ever carried by an Atlas V rocket, utilizing its most powerful configuration. ULA is contracted to launch seven more missions using Atlas V rockets and 38 launches using the larger Vulcan Centaur rocket for Project Kuiper. Tory Bruno, ULA's CEO, projected around a dozen launches this year for Amazon and other clients, splitting the missions between Atlas V and Vulcan.
Amazon's expansive launch plan also includes collaborations with SpaceX (three Falcon 9 missions), Arianespace (18 Ariane 6 launches), and Blue Origin (up to 27 New Glenn rockets). However, launch schedules for Ariane 6 and New Glenn remain subject to ongoing developments. “Our next launch will be on another Atlas V, and we’re already shipping and processing satellites for that KA-02 mission,” an Amazon spokesperson confirmed. “We’ll share more details closer to launch. Overall, we plan to continue to pick up our pace of operations from here, and we’re on track to begin delivering service to customers later this year.”
International partnerships are also emerging, with Japan's Sky Perfect JSAT and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation collaborating to offer Project Kuiper services to Japanese businesses and government entities.