California-based nanosatellite manufacturer Terran Orbital has partnered with insurance broker Aon ISB to offer launch and satellite replacement insurance services for customers of the former. The risk management and mitigation service will provide…
California-based nanosatellite manufacturer Terran Orbital has partnered with insurance broker Aon ISB to offer launch and satellite replacement insurance services for customers of the former.
The risk management and mitigation service will provide insurance to cover both the costs of a replacement launch opportunity as well as the satellites themselves. The companies said that product will cover all major US and international launch vehicles.
Small satellite operators have traditionally eschewed insuring their spacecraft as the cost of constructing a replacement was minimal, particularly in comparison to the costs of insuring a launch. However, interest in insuring small satellite constellations has been increasing. Satellite imagery start-up BlackSky Global recently told SatelliteFinance that it in talks about possibly insuring its planned 60 satellite constellation.
The Terran-Aon ISB partnership aims to offer the small-satellite community insurance solutions with minimal paperwork at an affordable price.
Michael Vinter, EVP at Aon ISB, commented: “We are committed to empowering the growth of the small satellite community by fulfilling its need for financial security through simple access to the space insurance market.”
Terran Orbital’s CEO Anthony Previte added: “We are pleased to respond to the needs of these companies by reducing the risk in their business models. The launch campaign is typically a large portion of any small satellite budget. Providing simple-to-obtain insurance options will give these companies peace of mind and the ability to weather any satellite launch failure.”
Terran Orbital is the parent company of Tyvak, a nanosatellite manufacturer founded by Dr Puig-Suari, a pioneer of small satellites who developed the CubeSat standard alongside Bob Twiggs back in 1999. Beyond nanosatellite construction, Terran Orbital offers small satellite mission consulting and launch services.
The company states that it is also building a global constellation of nanosatellites to form a data network that it claims will match or exceed the bandwidth carrying capacity of existing full-sized data satellites at half the cost to subscribers.