Rendering of ViaSat-3 in orbit. Photo: ViaSat-3

Viasat reported modest 3% year-over-year revenue increase in the company’s third quarter, driven by its defense segment. The operator expects the second ViaSat-3 satellite to enter service by May — CEO Mark Dankberg told investors on Thursday the satellite is about 34 days away from being on station. 

The F2 satellite launched in November and is set to add add 1 terabit per second of capacity to Viasat’s network.

The third and final ViaSat-3 satellite, VS-3 F3 is going through final integration. Dankberg said it’s expected to launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy shortly after F2 is fully deployed, and expected to enter into service by late summer. 

Viasat reported third quarter results for its fiscal year 2026 on Feb. 5. The operator’s Defense and Advanced Technologies (DAT) segment grew 9% year-over-year, while Communication Services grew 1%. Total revenue was $1.16 billion. 

Viasat reported net income of $25 million for the quarter, compared to a net loss of $158 million for the same time last year. This is largely due to a lump sum payment from Ligdao. Under a deal reached last year, AST SpaceMobile is making payments to Ligado, which are then paid to Viasat for rights to Inmarsat mid-band spectrum.  

Viasat is generating free cash flow and generated $24 million in free cash flow during the quarter, not including $420 million from the Ligado payment. 

The operator used a portion of the Ligado payment to pay down an Inmarsat term loan. The company’s net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio has improved from 3.7x last year to 3.25x.

Communication Services revenue was $825 million in the third quarter, led by around $300 million of aviation revenue. Aviation revenue grew 15%, led by a 9% increase in commercial aircraft in service, combined with higher average revenue per aircraft.

CFO Garrett Chase told investors that Viasat expects approximately 1,100 additional commercial aircraft will be put into service under existing customer agreements.

Fixed services and other revenue was down 20% as Viasat reports U.S. fixed broadband subscribers continue to decline. Viasat ended the quarter with 143,000 subscribers and $112 in average revenue per user.

Defense and Advanced Technologies revenue was $332 million during the quarter. Revenue was driven by backlog and growth in infosec and cyber defense and tactical networking.

Viasat noted that awards for DAT during the quarter of $300 million were down 8% due to impact from the government shutdown.