Initial Iridium Next Launch Delayed Two Months

Iridium Communications' planned Next constellation hit a delay, the company said Thursday, as a subsystem supplier is reworking hardware related to Ka-band satellite links. That puts off the initial launch of the Next constellation by two months, to December, Iridium said. Iridium Next -- which promises more capacity than the company's current satellite network -- is expected to be fully deployed in 2017, the company said.