Matt Desch: SpaceX ‘Back on the Path’ for Iridium Satellite Launch After Rocket Explosion

Iridium CEO Matt Desch has said he is confident that SpaceX is back on track to launch Iridium’s new fleet of satellites into orbit after Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX, spoke about the cause of the Sept. 1 explosion of the Falcon 9 rocket, the Washington Post reported Tuesday.

“We’ve been privy to the thinking and the analysis and the data involved at a very deep level,” Desch told Washington Post reporter Christian Davenport in an interview.

“We are back on the path for a first launch and, yes, I feel very confident that the issue that was found won’t be repeated for our launch,” Desch added.

Musk told CNBC in a Nov. 4 interview that the rocket explosion was caused by “a combination of liquid helium, advanced carbon fiber composites, and solid oxygen.”

Iridium has selected SpaceX to perform seven missions in 2017 to launch new satellites that would replace the former’s 66-satellite constellation, according to the report.