Jane Edwards
Iridium Communications CEO Matt Desch has said the company considers the upcoming launch of the last and eighth batch of 10 Iridium NEXT satellites as “the most important milestone of all,†Via Satellite reported Thursday.
The Iridium-8 mission is now scheduled to launch Tuesday, Jan. 8, aboard a SpaceX rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
“Our network will finally achieve the financial independence and maturity that makes a satellite operator mature, and creates a lot of opportunities we’ve never had before,†he said during a press call.
Desch noted that Iridium has begun the deorbiting process for 52 of the Block 1 satellites and offered updates on the company’s Iridium Certus L-band service.
