Aireon ADS-B Raises Funds, Preps for Launch

The Aireon satellite-based ADS-B network will launch in the first quarter of 2019, and the company has signed a $200 million credit facility led by Deutsche Bank that will facilitate Aireon operations. Aireon’s ADS-B payload is installed on each of Iridium’s Next satellites and provides a means of tracking ADS-B-equipped aircraft over oceanic and remote areas where it is difficult or impossible to install ADS-B ground stations.

Aireon has signed agreements with 11 air navigation service providers. According to Aireon, the satellite-based ADS-B capability “will usher in an era of enhanced safety, as well as enable on-the-fly route adjustments, more direct flight paths, improved fuel efficiency, and increased predictability.”