Russia’s Starlink rival loses one of its first satellites

Russia’s satellite internet service “Rassvet,” Moscow’s domestic alternative to SpaceX’s Starlink, has lost one of its first operational satellites just months after its launch.

According to the Russian state-controlled Kommersant, the company confirmed the loss on Tuesday, adding that 15 of the 16 satellites launched during the first operational deployment in March remain in orbit, News.Az reports, citing Kyiv Post.

“There are currently six experimental ‘Rassvet-1’ and ‘Rassvet-2’ spacecraft and 15 satellites from the first batch launch in low-Earth orbit, which have passed tests of key systems in space, are practicing maneuvers and are functioning in normal mode,” Bureau 1440 told Kommersant.

Bureau 1440 reportedly plans to launch 292 satellites into orbit by 2030, out of a total of 383 scheduled for launch.

The project is being developed under Russia’s national program “Data Economy.” Russian authorities plan to allocate 102 billion rubles ($1.3 billion) from the federal budget, while Bureau 1440 is expected to contribute an additional 329 billion rubles (around $4.2 billion).

Despite being in development for years, the project took on new urgency earlier this year, after SpaceX shut down Starlink access for Russian military use.

Plans to launch the service commercially by 2027 were confirmed June 5, by the CEO of Iks Holding, Alexei Shelobkov, speaking at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.

Shelobkov’s announcement comes as Starlink becomes an increasingly decisive factor in Russia’s war on Ukraine.

While Starlink is currently banned in Russia, with use of its equipment subject to fines, Ukrainian drones connecting to Starlink’s network have conducted successful attacks on Russian refineries in recent months, as the network is resilient to jamming.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli