ViaSat-3 Flight 2 reaches Florida ahead of Atlas V launch

ViaSat’s next-generation communications satellite, ViaSat-3 Flight 2 (VS-3 F2), arrived at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida in the early hours of September 30, 2025, marking a pivotal milestone on the road to its planned late October 2025 launch aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket.

The spacecraft’s arrival at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station signifies months of intense preparation, global coordination, and high-stakes logistics involving some of the aerospace industry’s leading players.

This is the second of three satellites in the ViaSat-3 Ka-band. Built at Boeing’s El Segundo facility in California, VS-3 F2 represents a leap in satellite-based broadband technology. Designed to provide more than double the bandwidth capacity of all ViaSat satellites currently in orbit, this satellite underscores the company's long-term drive to expand global connectivity for commercial, consumer, and defence users.

Upon anticipated service entry in early 2026, VS-3 F2 is expected to add more than 1 Tbps of capacity over the Americas. The VS-3 constellation forms a critical part of ViaSat’s multi-orbit, multi-band network, offering secure, reliable, and flexible coverage with dynamic beam-forming to direct capacity where demand is highest.

The satellite’s journey was a logistical performance of precision and experience. VS-3 F2 was safely and securely shipped in a specialised container that controls temperature, air cleanliness, and other environmental factors to protect the highly complex technology throughout the flight.

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Boeing engineers in El Segundo prepared the spacecraft for shipment to Los Angeles International Airport, where it was loaded onto an Antonov AN-124, one of the largest operational cargo aircraft in the world. With precision down to the millimetre, loading the container into the AN-124 cargo bay is an intricate procedure that takes around four to six hours.

“Being just a few weeks out from launch is incredibly exciting – this achievement represents the dedication and innovative spirit of hundreds of talented professionals who've lent their expertise to this mission,” noted David Abrahamian, VP of Space Systems at ViaSat. “A huge thank you to everyone who has contributed to this milestone. Now we turn our focus to getting F2 into orbit, where its tailored capabilities are expected to enable us to better serve our customers and meet increasing demand for resilient, global satellite communications.”

With VS-3 F2 now at Cape Canaveral, teams from ViaSat, Boeing, and ULA are entering the final phase of testing and assembly, verifying that all systems are ready for launch. The satellite will be secured to the Atlas V launch vehicle adaptor, enclosed within the payload fairing, a protective shell that shields the satellite from air pressure, heat, and wind during the first few minutes of the rocket’s flight through the atmosphere for protection during atmospheric flight, and then attached to the rocket.

The Atlas V, standing 196 feet (59.7 metres) tall and weighing 1.3 million pounds (587,000 kg) fully fuelled at liftoff, will be rolled out to Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) the day before launch for final preparations. From there, it will be launched into geostationary transfer orbit, from which VS-3 F2 will propel itself into geostationary orbit approximately 22,000 miles (36,000 km) above Earth’s equator.

As launch day draws near, ViaSat’s Florida teams continue to fine-tune systems and run final rehearsals. For an industry accustomed to the extraordinary, the late October liftoff will be another defining moment, putting the company closer to achieving its goal of delivering reliable, high-capacity broadband coverage across land, air, and sea.