Citing COVID-19, Viasat Asks for Extended ViaSat-3 Milestone Deadline

Citing the COVID-19 pandemic, Viasat asked the FCC International Bureau for more time to get its Ka-band ViaSat-3 geostationary satellite operational. In a request filed Wednesday to extend or waive the milestone date, Viasat asked that the Dec. 31 deadline for meeting the launch and operation milestone be moved to Oct. 31, 2022. The payload is done and is being integrated into a Boeing satellite bus, but the pandemic "disrupted supply chains, prevented effective use of human resources, and otherwise led to construction and delivery delays resulting from circumstances outside of an operator’s control," Viasat said.