The launch gap at a glance
- Last Amazon Leo launch
- Jul 2, 2026 Confirmed checked
- LA-08, ULA Atlas V 551
- First launch with an announced date
- Nov 23, 2026 Planned checked
- No earlier than; a final window comes later
- Satellites planned on LE-04
- 36 satellites Planned checked
- In orbit now, by tracker count
- 392 satellites in orbit Our calculation checked
- Trackers, not Amazon; Amazon says "nearly 400"
What Arianespace announced
LE-04 is Arianespace flight VA271, an Ariane 64 (P160C boosters) from French Guiana. Amazon's own launch page lists the same target. The key words are "no earlier than": launch dates set this way often slip, and the exact window comes later.
“The launch is planned no earlier than November 23, and a final launch window will be set closer to the mission.”
Arianespace newsroom, · read
Why it may not be the next launch
Amazon's largest block of launches is on United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket, and Amazon's executives say Vulcan goes first. In an interview reported on Oct 9, 2026, Amazon Leo vice president Chris Weber laid out the order:
“He said there would be at least three this year, starting with a United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket and followed by an Arianespace launch and additional Vulcans.”
Broadband Breakfast, · read
A few days later, Light Reading reported Amazon Leo's head, Rajeev Badyal, saying that first Vulcan launch was "weeks away":
“Badyal told Ars Technica that Amazon Leo is "weeks away" from its first launch on ULA's heavy-duty Vulcan rocket.”
Light Reading, · read
Neither Amazon nor ULA has announced a date for that mission, LV-01: Not announced. Both remarks reach us through press reports, so we label them reported, not confirmed. Until a date is published, LE-04 is the only Amazon Leo launch on the calendar, not necessarily the next one off the pad.
Why nothing has launched since Jul 2, 2026
As of Oct 25, 2026, it had been 115 days since the last Amazon Leo launch (our count). Three things line up behind the pause, each dated in the log below:
- Atlas V is used up. LA-08 on Jul 2, 2026 was the last Atlas V that Amazon bought for Leo. It carried 29 satellites Confirmed checked .
- Vulcan has been on hold. A booster underperformed on a Space Force launch on Feb 12, 2026 Reported, and ULA's own mission list shows no Vulcan flight since: Vulcan USSF-87 launched 2026-02-12; no Vulcan launch since (ULA mission list) Confirmed. Amazon has 38 Vulcan launches booked.
- New Glenn lost a rocket on the ground. Blue Origin's New Glenn exploded in a test on May 28, 2026, days before its first planned Amazon Leo launch; the satellites were not aboard Reported.
Building isn't the bottleneck. On Oct 8, 2026, Amazon wrote: "Amazon has built more than 1,000 satellites for its growing constellation—and it's just getting started." Confirmed That is more than twice the number in orbit.
What to watch
- A Vulcan date from ULA or Amazon for Amazon Leo's first Vulcan mission.
- LE-04's final launch window, which Arianespace says it will set closer to the mission.
- Amazon's third-quarter results, due Oct 29, 2026, where Amazon has updated its satellite count and timing before.
Every launch, with its date, rocket and satellite count, goes into the tracker as soon as it flies.
The launch gap, dated
Status key: Confirmed: Stated by the company itself (its own pages, terms or filings), checked on the date shown.Reported: Reported by a secondary source (press or a tracker), not confirmed by the company.Planned: A plan or target the company or a filing describes; dates can move.
- expected
LE-04: Ariane 6 with 36 satellites, no earlier than 23 November
Arianespace and Amazon set the fourth Ariane 6 mission for Amazon Leo, with 36 satellites, for no earlier than 23 November 2026 from French Guiana. It would bring Arianespace's total for Amazon to 136.
Source: newsroom.arianespace.com · checked
- reported
Amazon Leo executives: initial service still planned for 2026; no price yet; Prime bundles possible
In an Ars Technica interview reported by Broadband Breakfast (2026-10-09) and Light Reading (2026-10-12), Amazon Leo's head Rajeev Badyal and VP Chris Weber said initial service is still planned for later in 2026 without giving a date, that launches would resume within weeks with at least three more in 2026 (a Vulcan first, then an Ariane 6, then more Vulcans), and that Leo might be paired with Amazon Prime, eero routers, Fire TV or Ring. No price, plan or bundle was announced.
Source: broadbandbreakfast.com · checked
- launched
LA-08: last Atlas V launch for Amazon Leo
The ninth and final Atlas V bought for the program launched 29 satellites, bringing the total launched to 398 including the two prototypes. No Amazon Leo launch had happened since, as of 2026-11-03.
Source: aboutamazon.com · checked
- launched
LE-03: 36 satellites, the largest Amazon Leo batch so far
Ariane 64 with upgraded P160C boosters launched 36 satellites, Arianespace's 100th Amazon Leo satellite delivered across three flights.
Source: aboutamazon.com · checked
- reported
New Glenn explodes in a ground test days before its first Amazon Leo mission
Blue Origin's New Glenn exploded during a static-fire test at Cape Canaveral on the evening of 28 May 2026, ahead of a planned launch of 48 Amazon Leo satellites the following week. The satellites were not on the rocket.
Source: spacepolicyonline.com · checked
- reported
Vulcan grounded after a booster anomaly; Amazon's first Vulcan mission has no date
A solid rocket booster underperformed on Vulcan's USSF-87 launch for the US Space Force on 12 February 2026 (the payload still reached its orbit), and ULA has not flown Vulcan since. Vulcan is the rocket for 38 of Amazon's launches; in July ULA told SpacePolicyOnline the next Amazon Leo launch would be on Vulcan but its date was uncertain. In early October Amazon Leo's head told Ars Technica the first Vulcan launch was 'weeks away' (as reported by Light Reading); neither Amazon nor ULA has announced a date.
Update, Oct 28, 2026: superseded by the newer row “LV-01: first Vulcan launch for Amazon Leo, targeted for 13 November”.
Source: spacepolicyonline.com · checked
Deciding whether to wait for Amazon Leo? Take the buy-or-wait check: a few quick questions give one dated answer.
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How these facts were checked
We read every source listed below on the date shown. Quotes are copied from the source text and matched to it word for word, and every Amazon Leo item carries a label for how sure it is (confirmed, announced, planned, reported, unconfirmed or not announced). This post was drafted with AI assistance from those sources, and each number, date and quote was checked against them. It is dated: if the story moves on, we add a dated update instead of quietly rewriting it. Read the editorial policy.
Where each fact comes from
- aboutamazon.com/news/innovation-at-amazon/project-kuiper-satell… (primary source) · checked
- newsroom.arianespace.com/arianespace-to-launch-36-amazon-leo-sa… (primary source) · checked
- planet4589.org/space/con/kp/stats.html (secondary report) · checked
- broadbandbreakfast.com/amazon-leo-aiming-to-sway-consumers-from… (secondary report) · checked
- lightreading.com/satellite/amazon-leo-still-tracking-for-2026-s… (secondary report) · checked
- ulalaunch.com/missions (primary source) · checked
- aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-earnings-q3-2026-report (primary source) · checked
- spacepolicyonline.com/news/blue-origins-new-glenn-rocket-explod… (secondary report) · checked
- spacepolicyonline.com/news/atlas-v-launches-more-amazon-leos-wi… (secondary report) · checked
- aboutamazon.com/stories/how-amazon-leo-builds-satellites (primary source) · checked
- s2.q4cdn.com/299287126/files/doc_earnings/2026/q2/earnings-resu… (primary source) · checked
- s2.q4cdn.com/299287126/files/doc_earnings/2026/q3/earnings-resu… (primary source) · checked