DSEI 2023: OneWeb plans for next-generation satellites as constellation nears global coverage
OneWeb has a constellation of 634 LEO satellites. (Image: Airbus)
Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite communications company OneWeb will provide a global system from early next year with all 634 first-generation satellites in orbit and plans are under way to put next-generation satellites into space in three or four years’ time.
OneWeb has more than half of its ground infrastructure in place and the remainder is expected to be ready by early next year, while some satellites are still being moved into position and raised. While the system will provide pole-to-pole coverage it has non-technical geopolitical gaps, specifically China and Russia and one or two other places.
OneWeb – owned by a range of stakeholders including Eutelsat and HM government – is set to merge with Eutelsat depending on approval from that company's shareholders in late September. The government stepped in a few years ago when one of the part-owners entered financial difficulties,
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