Ligado Plans L-Band 5G Payload for AST's Constellation
Ligado is seeking FCC Space Bureau approval to operate an L-band payload that would be placed on AST SpaceMobile's low earth orbit constellation. In a bureau application Monday, Ligado said the SkyTerra Next payload would provide 5G service to consumers in conjunction with the space-based mobile broadband to be provided by AST. AST would provide telemetry, tracking and control functions for SkyTerra Next, while Ligado would retain operational control of the payload itself, the filing said.
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FCC approval "is all the more important" in light of SpaceX's EchoStar spectrum purchase, "since the Commission will want to ensure the market for space-based mobile broadband is competitive, dynamic, and responsive to the increasing threat from China," Ligado said. The L-band service could be deployed promptly in the U.S. because the company already has licensed and coordinated access across North America, it added.
Ligado has said its Chapter 11 restructuring largely hinges on AST leasing access to its L-band spectrum (see 2501060026).