Xona Space Systems has secured FCC approval and is preparing to launch six Pulsar satellites on the SpaceX Bandwagon-5 mission this month. These satellites represent the company's first internally designed and manufactured flight units, with initial service operations scheduled to commence in early 2027.
The company is now focused on scaling production to build 250 additional satellites. The next four units in production are approximately 10% lighter than previous designs. Xona aims to reach a manufacturing capacity of multiple satellites per week by the end of 2027, emphasizing the need to maintain reliability while reducing cycle times.
To support this growth, Xona is expanding its operations in Montreal, where it established a presence in 2024. The company is adding 35,000 square feet of manufacturing and mission operations space at a site historically linked to Canada's Alouette I satellite. Burlingame remains the primary production facility.
The manufacturing expansion is led by operations executive Cadariu, formerly of Waymo. The company is shifting more design and production work in-house to improve control, increase speed, and optimize costs. This infrastructure is intended to support both current satellite production and future hardware generations.
