|
The
S-band satellite had been scheduled to launch with technology
billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX but Inmarsat said setbacks to
SpaceX's launch schedule prompted it to turn to Arianespace
instead.
Inmarsat said on Thursday that European-owned Arianespace will
launch the S-band satellite in mid-2017.
SpaceX has been forced to delay December rocket launches until
January as an investigation continues into why one rocket burst
into flames on Sept. 1.
SpaceX has a backlog of more than 70 missions for NASA and
commercial customers, worth more than $10 billion.
No-one at SpaceX was immediately available to comment on the
loss of the contract, the value of which was not revealed by
Inmarsat.
Inmarsat said that it still planned to launch a different
satellite, the Inmarsat-5 F4, with SpaceX during the first-half
of 2017, adding that it looked forward to working with SpaceX in
future.
Inmarsat plans to use the S-band satellite for providing air
passengers with connectivity, as part of the European Aviation
Network project with Deutsche Telecom.
(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
