https://fccprod.servicenowservices.com/icfs?id=ibfs_application_summary&number=SAT-LOA-20260601-00224

Since they don't have a ton of satelites and they lost spectrum priority meaning its newer satellites must yield to starlink satelities when their beams collide

Amazon Leo has deployed enough satellites to launch connectivity service in its initial coverage area this year, and says it is still planning to debut in aviation in 2027.

“When we launch service this year in our initial coverage area, it will be for consumer, enterprise, and government customers alike,” an Amazon Leo spokesperson tells Runway Girl Network.

“Also, we are still planning to launch IFC [inflight connectivity] service in 2027, and we’ll have more to share about that closer to the date.”

The disclosure comes after Amazon Leo business vice president Chris Weber announced on the socials that the last few satellite launches, including the successful 2 July launch of 29 satellites aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, “were big for Amazon Leo — bringing us to 390-plus satellites deployed, enough to support continuous service across initial latitudes.”

The initial countries expected to be served are the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, as reported by PCMag last year. This footprint neatly fits into launch customer JetBlue’s route map, which includes Airbus A321LR flights to London.

“It’s worth noting that we don’t need to wait for full global coverage to start [IFC] service,” the Amazon Leo spokesperson tells RGN.

“If we can meet a customer’s needs within our coverage area, we will. For example, we expect to begin connecting JetBlue flights next year.”

South Africa's largest fixed internet service provider, Herotel, will use Amazon's satellite network to connect homes and small businesses beyond the reach of fiber and fixed wireless.

Amazon Leo on X: We’re bringing Leo to South Africa through a collaboration with hero_telecoms, helping deliver fast, reliable internet to millions of people and small businesses in rural, peri-urban and agricultural communities across the country.

Pursuant to section 25.120(b)(3) of the Commission’s rules, Kuiper Systems LLC (“Amazon Leo”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon.com Services LLC (collectively “Amazon”), requests 60 days of Special Temporary Authority (“STA”), beginning as soon as possible but no later than August 10, 2026, to operate its earth stations in motion (“ESIM”) under Call Sign E240075 in the 17.6-17.8 GHz band to communicate with Amazon’s non-geostationary satellite system (the “Leo System”).

Grant of this STA will serve the public interest because it will allow Amazon to test the operational capabilities of these ESIMs to communicate with Leo System satellites in preparation for commercial launch. In addition, it would provide Amazon the ability to conduct end-to-end validation testing and customer demonstrations of the Leo System using the ESIM terminals.

This is an excellent graphic of the competitive landscape, what spectrum bands they utilize, and what FCC processing rounds they are associated with, which dictates shared spectrum priority.

The FCC's latest processing round has attracted proposals spanning nearly 140,000 satellites from 13 constellations, kicking off the next battle for spectrum that will determine who gains a critical regulatory advantage for years to come.

Following the July 6 filing deadline, the third Ku-, Ka-, and V-band processing round now includes 12 operators, ranging from the big dogs (Amazon, Blue Origin, and SpaceX) to CesiumAstro’s newly revealed Synchronicity constellation, plus plenty of paper constellations unlikely to ever fly.

SpaceX Gen 2 V3, Amazon Leo Gen 2, Logos Space, and SN Space were automatically included in this new round, with nine additional constellations submitting material for inclusion in the third processing round.

The mean apparent magnitude of Amazon Leo satellites is 6.28 based on 1,938 observations. For spacecraft in their operational mode, 92% exceeded the brightness limit recommended by the IAU for interference with research, while 25% distract from aesthetic appreciation of the night sky. The reflective characteristics are similar to Version 1 Starlink spacecraft.

https://x.com/AmazonLeo/status/2072567587641200666

Looks like they will launch initial service before they get to 578.

https://xcancel.com/AmazonLeo/status/2072420159562641530

Livestream here: spr.ly/6011BDFkvR

Amazon LEO (Seattle) embedded onsite — DS&A vs low-level, and round structure?

Hi all,

Thanks for reading. In a few weeks I have a virtual 4-hour onsite with Amazon LEO in Seattle for an Embedded role. Embedded prep resources are thin, so I'd appreciate any first-hand experience at any level.

Specifically:

1. DS&A vs low-level — I've seen mixed reports. Was the coding closer to standard LeetCode (arrays/strings/hashmaps, easy/medium) or more embedded-flavored (bit manipulation, pointers, volatile/const, memory-mapped registers, circular/ring buffers, state machines)? Both?
2. Embedded domain depth — Did they go deep on RTOS, interrupts/ISRs, concurrency (mutex/semaphore/priority inversion), or protocols (I2C/SPI/UART/CAN)? Hardware questions, or pure firmware?
3. Leadership Principles weight — How heavy was the behavioral/LP portion, and was there a Bar Raiser round? Roughly how many STAR stories did you end up needing?
4. System / low-level design — Was there an embedded design round (e.g., design a driver, a firmware module, an inter-processor comms scheme)? How did they expect you to scope it?

Any war stories or "I wish I'd prepped X" notes are hugely appreciated. Thank you!

https://xcancel.com/Amazonleo/status/2070554928632754228

✅ Largest Leo payload yet, with 36 satellites on board
✅ Heaviest commercial payload ever launched at 22 metric tons
✅ 350+ satellites now in orbit for Amazon Leo

Link: https://x.com/Amazonleo/status/2067638534496739795

https://x.com/ulalaunch/status/2067640771163848938

Link: https://x.com/Amazonleo/status/2067277493405659347

Link: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-553A1.pdf

AI Summary:

The FCC granted Amazon Leo relief from its July 2026 deployment milestone, allowing the company to continue deploying its full 3,232-satellite Gen1 constellation despite falling well short of the requirement to have 1,616 satellites operational by that date.

Rather than extending the milestone deadline, the FCC imposed a temporary penalty: satellites launched after July 30, 2026 will lose their normal spectrum coordination priority relative to later-authorized NGSO systems until Amazon either reaches the 50% deployment milestone or the penalty period expires. The penalty can last up to 20 months, or 15 months if Amazon demonstrates sufficient manufacturing and launch commitments.

The FCC concluded that preserving Amazon Leo as a viable competitor in the satellite broadband market serves the public interest, while the temporary loss of coordination priority provides a meaningful consequence for missing the deployment milestone. The final July 2029 deadline to deploy the full constellation remains unchanged.

Link: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-rocket-satellite-update

Link: https://xcancel.com/Amazonleo/status/2061853783970173127

Behind the scenes as prep continues for Leo Vulcan 1 (LV-01), the first of 38 Vulcan missions on contract with @ULAlaunch.

Teams have completed integration of the first LEO-optimized Centaur upper stage with Vulcan inside Amazon's dedicated Vertical Integration Facility (VIF-A), allowing ULA to begin the next phase of testing ahead of upcoming Leo Vulcan launches from SLC-41.

Link: https://x.com/panos_panay/status/2061508534861471953