Manufacturing Problems Delay TerreStar-1 Launch

Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) notified TerreStar Networks Inc. that delivery of the TerreStar-1 satellite has been delayed by 10 months, with a new delivery date scheduled for August 2008, TerreStar announced.

SS/L subcontractors and internal product development for the delay involving S-band low noise amplifiers, oscillators and the S-band feed array were cited for the delay. “The only way to avoid a significant change in the scheduled delivery date would be to reduce satellite testing that we think could put optimum satellite performance at risk,” SS/L CEO Patrick DeWitt told TerreStar in a May 29 letter.

TerreStar, a subsidiary of Motient Corp., remains on schedule to meet its operational milestone of November 2008, the company said.