Offered Second-Gen Constellation Info Can't Be Used for Conditions: SpaceX

SpaceX anticipates launches at least once a week of its second-generation satellites in 2023, the company told the FCC International Bureau Tuesday. It said the number of satellites could range between 20 and 60 satellites on each Falcon 9 launch and between 50 and 100 satellites on each Starship launch. It said its proposed second-gen constellation would carry enough propellant for 5,000 propulsive maneuvers over the satellite's life, including about 350 collision avoidance maneuvers. It said its first-gen satellites are averaging fewer than three collision avoidance maneuvers every six months over the past year -- most of them to avoid debris from Russia's 2021 anti-satellite weaponry testing. It said as the bureau keeps requesting information that goes beyond the scope of its rules, it "is concerned that this additional information, which no other operator is required to provide, will be used as a basis for conditioning a grant of its application." It said there isn't a legal basis for conditioning grant of its pending application on launch cadence, fuel or other information it has voluntarily provided. Viasat told the bureau SpaceX's second-gen plans rely on a collision risk analysis that doesn't reflect the actual physical characteristics of the second-gen satellites it plans to deploy. It said SpaceX also has indicated its noncompliance with the commission's per-satellite collision probability limit is worse than previously indicated.