Report: One Web to Build Satellites in Florida

OneWeb constellation. (Credit: Airbus Defence & Space)

UPDATE: One Web’s Greg Wyler has confirmed that Virgin Galactic will be launching satellites out of Florida with its 747 and LauncherOne rocket. It’s not clear where they will be based, but my guess is the former Shuttle Landing Facility that Space Florida has taken over. Cecil Field in Jacksonville is another possibility.

It looks like One Web is going to be building its hundreds of satellites on Florida’s Space Coast.

A major announcement scheduled Tuesday morning is expected to confirm a high-profile startup’s decision to build hundreds of satellites on the Space Coast that will help expand global Internet access.

Space Florida’s deal with OneWeb promises to generate 250 jobs and $80 million in capital investment, including a $36 million factory to be built at Kennedy Space Center’s Exploration Park on Merritt Island.

Coming months after Blue Origin announced plans to build rockets in the same area, OneWeb’s arrival would further diversify a region long defined as a launch site for vehicles made elsewhere.

And it would establish Exploration Park as a major manufacturing hub near communities hit hard by the space shuttle’s retirement five years ago.