The ever-dwindling supply of Atlas V rockets will shrink by one more in a couple of weeks if all goes to plan for United Launch Alliance. The company announced today that they plan to launch the ViaSat 3 mission in early November aboard the venerable rocket.
(Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla., Oct. 28, 2025) – Due to the continuation of severe weather impacting launch processing, the launch of a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 551 rocket carrying the ViaSat-3 Flight 2 (F2) mission for Viasat is now planned for no earlier than Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025, pending range approval.
The launch is scheduled for 10:24 p.m. EST at the opening of a 44-minute window, from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida.
Viasat-3 is a three-satellite, geostationary Ka-band constellation planned to deliver global coverage. Operated by Viasat, Inc., the first satellite was launched in 2023. The system is designed to provide 100+ Mbps broadband service to homes, businesses and enterprises, as well as connectivity for commercial aircraft and government users.
This will be a replacement satellite for ViaSat-3 F1, which launched on 1 May 1st 2023 aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy. While the payload was delivered successfully by SpaceX, the deployment of the satellite’s antennae was subnominal, and its performance was so poor that it triggered a $420+ insurance claim for payload loss.
Launch schedules being what they are, the potential for this new launch date to move is ever-present, so it will be worth keeping an eye on.
At A Glance
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Mission | Atlas V 551 | ViaSat-3 — Go for Launch! |
| Organization | United Launch Alliance (ULA) |
| Location | Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA |
| Rocket | Atlas V 551 |
| Pad | Space Launch Complex 41 |
| Status | Go for Launch |
| Status Info | Current T-0 confirmed by official or reliable sources. |
| Window Opens | Wednesday, 11/05/2025 10:24 PM |
| Window Closes | Wednesday, 11/05/2025 11:08 PM |
| Destination | Geostationary Transfer Orbit |
| Mission Description | The ViaSat-3 series of Ka-band satellites is designed to deliver more than 1 terabit per second of network capacity per satellite, with flexible, dynamically steerable bandwidth to serve customers where demand is highest. |
| Broadcast Start Time | Coverage typically begins ~15 minutes before liftoff. |
| ULA Streaming Coverage | Watch Live on ULA’s Mission Page | ULA YouTube Channel |
| Spaceflight Now YouTube Coverage | Watch on YouTube – Spaceflight Now Live Stream |
As of 3:57 PM Tuesday October 28, 2025. Launch times are subject to change or cancellation at any time. Consult ULA’s mission page for the most current information.