Big Primes Squeezing into a Smallsat World
Following Boeing’s acquisition of Millennium Space Systems in August, all of the leading prime contractors in the manufacturing sector have made a play in the small satellite market. Lockheed Martin’s investment in Terran Orbital, Airbus’s joint venture with OneWeb, Thales Alenia Space’s partnership with Spaceflight Industries, and SSL’s in-house development, among others, have each committed resources to smallsat manufacturing capabilities. With all eyes now turning to the smallsat market, what are the main drivers and where will we see the greatest impact from these moves?