Amazon has decided to launch two satellites as a secondary payload on ULA's new Vulcan rocket as a result of delays in the rocket's construction at launch startup ABL Space Systems.

This mission, which will be the maiden orbital launch of a new rocket that will compete with Elon Musk's SpaceX rockets, is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023.

As part of Amazon's Kuiper network, a constellation of 3,236 low-Earth orbiting spacecraft intended to beam broadband internet to rural areas of the world, the prototype satellites will be the first to launch.

In order to catch up to SpaceX's rapidly expanding Starlink network, which is currently providing internet access to thousands of users in dozens of countries, the corporation has committed to investing $10 billion in the project.

The transfer by Amazon to ULA's Vulcan rocket will be a realistic test flight with its partner ULA prior to the 38 future Vulcan missions it ordered from the launch company in 2021 to help in the deployment of the majority of its operational satellites.

When exactly Amazon intends to launch those initial functioning satellites is unknown. The corporation must roll out half of its constellation by 2026, according to American communications regulators.

According to the company's president Dan Piemont, ABL finalised specialised work on the Kuiper satellites' launch adapter and other pieces earlier this year.The prototype satellites will be the first ones to fly as a component of Amazon's Kuiper network, a projected constellation of 3,236 low-Earth orbiting satellites intended to beam broadband internet to far-flung regions of the planet.

The business has committed $10 billion to the endeavour in an effort to catch up to SpaceX's rapidly expanding Starlink network, which is already providing internet service to thousands of users across dozens of nations.