Iridium Next satellite. Credit: Iridium artist's concept

Iridium’s unveiling of the Aireon service could be the boost that the hosted payload ecosystem needed.  After years of talk with little to show in terms of actual contracts or deployments, the deal could signify an inflection point for the hosted payload industry and show the way forward in terms of innovative government-enterprise partnerships.

Aireon is a planned joint venture between Iridium and NAV CANADA with support from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and suppliers Harris Corporation and ITT Exelis. Aireon will use Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) receivers built into each of the 66 satellites in Iridium NEXT to deliver surveillance capability to Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) and their commercial airline customers.

The announcement is in line with NSR’s forecasts in its latest market study, Hosted Payloads on Commercial Satellites, 2nd Edition.  Moreover, it reflects NSR’s conclusion that innovative mix of government and enterprise risk taking will be key to the hosted payload (HP) proposition over the long term.  The deal is an important milestone in the marketplace given the relatively slow uptake of the HP option over the past 3-4 years.  HPs have been discussed quite extensively among a host of key market players including satellite operators, satellite manufacturers, government clients, military entities, technology companies and even the venture capital community.  However prior to this deal, numerous HP discussions have not materialized into actual contracts.  This article can be found here.