York Space Systems (York), a Denver-based aerospace company dedicated to the rapid deployment of complete space mission solutions, announced successful first contact with all eight York satellites delivered to orbit as part of the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) Tranche 0 (T0) of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA). The York satellites launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Sunday, April 2 and York confirmed successful first contact with all spacecraft on Monday, April 3.
Two additional York satellites are scheduled for the next SDA launch in June. All 20 T0 satellites, including 10 from York, will participate in demonstration of the low-latency communication links to support the warfighter with a resilient network of integrated capabilities from low-Earth orbit (LEO).
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“We are thrilled to report that we have established communications with all spacecraft,” said Dirk Wallinger, CEO of York. “This is an amazing first step in fulfilling the Space Development Agency’s vision for the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, and we are proud to be on orbit in just over 2.5 years from contract award. We are excited to keep supporting SDA as they continue down the path to full system performance and are honored to be selected as their partner.”
SDA awarded York a $94 million contract to develop these 10 Tranche 0 satellites in Aug. 2020, making the time from contract to launch just over 2.5 years. Once on orbit, the T0 satellites must undergo a period of test and checkout of the mission payloads before demonstrations can begin.
York is also actively developing an additional 42 satellites in support of SDA’s Tranche 1 (T1) of the PWSA, expected to launch in late 2024, as well as an additional 12 experimental satellites as part of the Tranche 1 Demonstration and Experimentation System (T1DES) program, expected to launch in 2025.
SOURCE: PR Newswire