ULA Will Launch ViaSat 3 After Atlas V Valve Replacement

United Launch Alliance announced that it will proceed with the liftoff of the ViaSat 3 F2 satellite after technicians replaced a valve on the Atlas V rocket, resolving a technical issue that had threatened to delay the mission. The launch is being covered live by spaceflight media outlets and marks a critical step for Viasat as the company prepares to expand its Ka band network capacity for the Americas.

The spacecraft is designed to deliver more than one terabit per second of throughput, a level of capacity that Viasat says will significantly augment its existing network. Engineers completed months of in orbit testing at the satellite operating position of 79 degrees west longitude, and Viasat expects the F2 satellite to enter commercial service in early 2026. The addition will bolster bandwidth for consumers, businesses, and mobility markets that rely on satellite links where terrestrial infrastructure is limited.

Atlas V, a workhorse launcher for both commercial and government missions, was sidelined briefly while teams identified and replaced the valve. The repair underscores the exacting mechanical checks required for modern launch vehicles and the tight margins under which launch providers operate. Officials emphasized that the replacement was part of standard troubleshooting and verification before allowing the countdown to resume.

The ViaSat 3 program represents a generational upgrade in geostationary satellite capacity for its operator. By concentrating capacity in the Ka band, the system can support high data rate services for home internet, airborne and maritime connectivity, and enterprise customers. Network operators and regulators have been watching the deployment closely because capacity at those orbital slots has tangible effects on service competition and spectrum planning across the region.

Beyond consumer benefits, satellites with terabit class payloads are relevant to national infrastructure resilience. They can provide surge capacity during natural disasters when terrestrial networks fail, and they offer redundancy for critical communications. At the same time analysts note that increasingly powerful geostationary satellites are entering a crowded market that includes low Earth orbit networks which trade latency and global coverage for a different deployment architecture.

Viasat’s timeline calls for an initial in orbit checkout period to confirm throughput performance and linkage with ground gateways, followed by phased integration into its live service network. That process typically involves telemetry and payload testing, link verification, and gradual traffic routing onto the new satellite to validate quality of service under operational load.

The launch will therefore be watched closely by industry observers and customers alike. If successful, it will not only restore ULA’s launch schedule but also add an immediate boost to Viasat’s capacity over the Americas at a time of rising demand for broadband connectivity. The mission highlights both the technological advances in satellite throughput and the careful engineering work required to deliver them to service.