Atlas V Rocket Launches Second Batch of Satellites for Amazon's Project Kuiper
An Atlas 5 launched the second batch of satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband constellation on June 23rd. The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after an earlier attempt on June 16th was delayed due to an Atlas V engine issue.
The mission, similar to the previous Kuiper launch in April by an Atlas V, maintained significant secrecy with United Launch Alliance (ULA) ending its webcast shortly after liftoff. ULA confirmed that the Kuiper satellites were placed into their intended orbits about an hour post-launch. Amazon announced that the 27 satellites would move from initial orbits at 450 kilometers to operational orbits at 630 kilometers.
With this launch, designated KA-02, Amazon now has 54 Kuiper satellites in orbit, along with two prototype satellites being deorbited. In 2022, Amazon secured over 80 launches from Arianespace, Blue Origin, and ULA for a constellation exceeding 3,200 satellites. ULA has six more Atlas 5 launches for Kuiper before retiring the vehicle and plans 38 Vulcan launches, each carrying 45 Kuiper satellites. Arianespace will conduct 18 Ariane 6 launches, and Blue Origin is contracted for 12 New Glenn launches with an option for 15 more. "Those agreements comprise the largest commercial procurement of launch capacity in history, and support thousands of suppliers and highly skilled jobs across the U.S. and Europe," Amazon wrote in a Project Kuiper description.
Amazon faces delays in deploying the Kuiper satellites, about a year behind schedule, and may request an extension from the FCC for its July 2026 deployment milestone due to launch vehicle delays. The company aims to increase launch frequency to begin beta testing the constellation and plans to start providing internet service with the constellation this year.
Project Kuiper will compete with SpaceX's Starlink, which already provides service to customers around the world using more than 7,600 operational satellites in LEO. Starlink, the largest satellite constellation ever, is continuously expanding with 55 missions launched by SpaceX this year.
ULA also announced that its next mission will be the first national security mission for the Vulcan rocket, certified by the Space Force in March, with no disclosed launch date.