Amazon just asked federal regulators for breathing room in its race to challenge SpaceX's Starlink dominance. The e-commerce giant filed a request with the FCC on Friday seeking a 24-month extension to deploy roughly 1,600 satellites for its newly rebranded Amazon Leo internet service, pushing the deadline from July 2026 to July 2028. The company blames rocket shortages, manufacturing delays, and spaceport bottlenecks - even as it's added 10 more SpaceX launches and a dozen Blue Origin rides to its manifest.
Amazon is running out of time and rockets. The company's ambitious plan to launch thousands of internet satellites just hit a regulatory crossroads, forcing it to ask the Federal Communications Commission for a major deadline extension as it scrambles to compete with SpaceX's established Starlink network.
The filing, made public Friday, reveals the mounting pressure on Amazon's $10 billion Project Kuiper - now rebranded as Amazon Leo. The company needs to get roughly 1,600 of its planned 3,236 low Earth orbit satellites operational by July 2026 under current FCC rules. But Amazon is now asking for until July 2028, citing what it calls a "shortage in the near-term availability" of launch vehicles.
It's an ironic twist. Amazon claims Leo is "producing satellites considerably faster than others can launch them," according to the FCC filing. The company pointed to manufacturing disruptions, failed launch vehicles, and spaceport capacity constraints as factors beyond its control. Yet Amazon simultaneously announced it's secured 10 additional launches with SpaceX - the very company whose Starlink service Leo aims to challenge - plus a dozen more rides with Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Amazon's own Jeff Bezos.
The numbers tell the deployment story. Amazon has lofted more than 150 satellites since its first operational launch in April 2025. By July 30, the company expects to have roughly 700 satellites in orbit, which would vault it past to become the world's second-largest constellation. That still leaves Amazon chasing Starlink's commanding lead of over 9,000 satellites serving approximately 9 million customers globally.
