Major restructuring in Russia's space sector. March 2026

Forecast: "Summer 2025 - End of Spring 2026: The Most Significant Periods of the Foreseeable Geopolitical Future" (published on May 28, 2025, links)

S. Dragun:

Additionally, an incredible impetus for the most progressive technologies will be given precisely in the Russian segment. It seems that all the loud statements about technological progress in the West are merely manipulative rhetoric. Meanwhile, Russia, quietly, but indeed, is moving at a groundbreaking pace in technologies. This may be part of grand transformations in ... the space area ... by ... Spring 2026...

As predicted by S. Dragun, in the coming Spring, an "incredible impetus for the most progressive technologies precisely in the Russian segment" will be observed, particularly in the space area.

March 23, 2026 at 8:24 pm, the first batch launch of 16 series low Earth orbit communication satellites of the "Dawn" system by BUREV 1440 took place. This system is designed to perform the same communication tasks as "StarLink". In essence, it's connecting to satellite mobile broadband Internet through special terminals, and then directly through smartphones.

Experts estimate that this is a significant event and a milestone in the development of Russian satellite communication. There is a 7-year lag behind "StarLink", but at the same time, technologies initially more compatible with mobile communication are noted.

Additionally, it is positively noted that Russia is not trying to repeat existing systems ("a curse for the country"), but rather creates its own system, most suitable for the country in today's conditions.

Drawing a comprehensive global conclusion from Russia's recent leap in the space field, we won't delve into the history of how Russian scientists took the first steps towards creating a domestic satellite mobile broadband Internet, as S. Dragun noted, it was not an easy task, nor do we need to compare domestic and foreign systems. This information is readily available on the Internet and other media.

We can only state that the "Dawn-3" satellites are a hybrid system: key structural elements and critical infrastructure (laser communication, engines) are Russian, but in the field of high-performance microelectronics for 5G NTN, foreign components are likely used, reflecting the current state of Russia's electronics industry.

Plans for the Near Future

• 2026 - Launch of over 250 satellites and client testing (global coverage 24/7).
• 2027 - Commercial launch of broadband service and continued gradual augmentation of the constellation as needed.
• 2035 - Constellation growth to the targeted 900 satellites.

Overall, a major event has occurred and this is a significant milestone in the development of Russian satellite communication.

S. Dragun noted as early as last May:

...but the most important thing will be the first and very important steps out of the old frames into which Russia was previously confined. As I already indicated, this will not be easy, but these events will be of epochal scale. And yes, the results of all these restructuring... will become clear and will take on a more structured form by late spring 2026...

(continuation of the topic follows)