Amazon Leo launches 29 more birds ahead of debut
July 6th 2026
Amazon is on track to launch its broadband service later this year after a United Launch Alliance (ULA) rocket successfully deployed 29 Leo birds into low Earth orbit, bringing the constellation’s total to 396 as the company races to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink.
The satellites lifted off yesterday (2 July) aboard ULA’s Atlas V rocket, marking the eighth Leo Atlas flight and ULA’s 14th mission for the programme overall.
The launch also closed out the Leo Atlas campaign entirely, with Amazon’s next mission set to fly on ULA’s new heavy-lift Vulcan rocket, which is expected to carry larger payloads and boost the pace of deployment going forward.
Melissa Wuerl, Amazon Leo’s director of launch systems, said Atlas V had been critical to the constellation’s early buildout, delivering 224 satellites across eight missions with a perfect success record.
She noted Amazon now has hundreds of flight-ready satellites staged at Cape Canaveral, Florida along with a new vertical integration facility built to support upcoming Vulcan launches.
“We have a clear path to increase launch and deployment cadence, helping us quickly expand network coverage following an initial service rollout later this year,” Wuerl stated.
Amazon has not stated how much its broadband service will cost.
In a LinkedIn post, Chris Weber, vice president of business and product for Amazon Leo, stated Amazon still has significant work ahead, including raising the newly launched satellites into position.
He noted the company has completed enough launches to support its initial service launch this year, with future missions serving primarily to expand coverage and capacity rather than being required for the service debut itself.
The initial Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licence required Amazon to have half of its planned first-generation constellation launched by the end of July 2026. The FCC waived the deadline requirement last month, but Amazon is still mandated to deploy its full 3,232-satellite constellation by the final deadline of 30 July 2029.
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