Mynaric Delivers Laser Terminals to Telesat for DARPA Blackjack program

Mynaric Condor Mk2 terminal integration. Photo: Mynaric

Mynaric has delivered multiple lasercom terminals to Telesat for the operators’ satellites involved in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Blackjack Track B program. The company announced Wednesday that it delivered multiple Condor Mk2 optical communications terminals to Telesat’s government subsidiary, Telesat Government Solutions. This was Mynaric’s first delivery for space-based optical terminals.

Blackjack is a DARPA and U.S. Space Force program to leverage commercial LEO technology for a global high-speed network for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Telesat was contracted in 2020 to deliver two spacecraft buses to DARPA for a“risk reduction flight to test optical inter-satellite link communications with government payloads in orbit.Telesat then subcontracted Mynaric to supply the terminals shortly after. The terminals were originally scheduled to be delivered in mid-2021.

The terminals will now be mounted to Telesat’s Croupier satellites and subsequently launched to space for the DARPA mission.

“The delivery of flight-ready space products marks an important milestone in Mynaric’s history as we get a big step closer to establishing space heritage within the next few months,” said Bulent Altan, co-CEO of Mynaric. “We have prepared for this inaugural customer mission of our Condor product through extensive product development and testing by our team and close collaboration with the team at Telesat GS.”

New Co-CEO Mustafa Veziroglu commented that the company’s laser communications products are on track for “significant production ramp up” this year and Mynaric will be shipping flight-ready units to existing and prospective customers this year.