The satellite is designed to enhance broadband communications in India, both on the ground and during air travel. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station happened at 1:31 p.m. EST (1831 UTC).
The successful launch of 36 more OneWeb satellites aboard India’s most powerful rocket Saturday brought the total number of OneWeb spacecraft in orbit to 618, enough for the London-based company to start global broadband service later this year.
An Indian LVM3 rocket lifted off at 11:30 p.m. EDT Saturday (0330 UTC Sunday) with 36 more OneWeb internet satellites. Once the new 36 satellites complete orbit-raising and commissioning, OneWeb will have 618 active satellites in its fleet, enough for global broadband service.