On Sunday morning US billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will launch Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Dror 1 communications satellite into space from Cape Canaveral in Florida.
SpaceX and IAI are joining forces in a second effort to launch a communications satellite into orbit after the fiasco of their previous attempt in 2016, when the Falcon 9 launcher exploded on the launch pad together with the Amos 6 communications satellite.
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According to the authorities in the US, this is the first time that SpaceX will undertake a launch into geostationary orbit, meaning that the payload in space will orbit at a fixed point above the earth. After releasing the satellite into space, the SpaceX launch rocket will return to earth and land on an unmanned craft in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Dror 1 communications satellite, the successor of the Amos 8, has been developed by IAI’s Systems Missiles and Space Group (SMS) and its mission is to achieve, “Communications independence for the State of Israel” and will serve the needs of the country for at least 15 years without dependence on private communications companies.
The satellite includes systems that will allow for communications flexibility in space for future generations, as well as a dedicated digital payload. The satellite was developed at the request of the state with a budget of $200 million and is the first dedicated communications satellite of its kind – after years in which Amos served as a communications satellite, as well as many other uses.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 11, 2025.
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