Federal Communications CommissionDA 26-985 DA 26-985 Released: September 15, 2026 APPLICATIONS FILED FOR TRANSFER OF CONTROL OF IRIDIUM TO ROCKET LAB Pleading Cycle Established GN Docket No. 26-257 Comments/Petitions Due: October 15, 2026 Responses to Comments/Oppositions to Petitions Due: October 30, 2026 Replies to Responses/Oppositions Due: November 9, 2026 By this Public Notice, the Space Bureau, Office of International Affairs, and Office of Engineering and Technology invite comment from interested parties on the applications filed by Rocket Lab Corporation (Rocket Lab) and Iridium Communications Inc. (Iridium, and with Rocket Lab, Applicants) for consent to the transfer of control of Commission authorizations from Iridium to Rocket Lab as part of a proposed merger. See Description of Transaction and Public Interest Statement, ICFS File No. SAT-T/C-20260720-00302 (filed Aug. 10, 2026) (Narrative); 47 U.S.C. §§ 214(a), 310(d); 47 CFR §§ 5.79, 63.24, 25.119. The applications subject to this Public Notice (Applications) are listed in the Attachment. The applications have been found, upon initial review, to be acceptable for filing. The Commission reserves the right to return any of the applications listed in the Attachment if, upon further examination, it is determined to be defective and not in conformance with the Commission’s rules or policies. Description of Transaction. On June 28, 2026, Rocket Lab and Iridium entered into an agreement and plan of merger under which Rocket Lab would acquire control of Iridium and its subsidiaries. Narrative at 12. The transaction would be effectuated by Ion Merger Sub I, LLC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab, merging with and into Iridium, with Iridium surviving the merger as an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab. Id. at 12-13. The Applicants state that, in certain circumstances, the transaction would include a second step. As part of that second step, Iridium, as the surviving corporation of the first step, would merge with and into Ion Merger Sub II, LLC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab, with Ion Merger Sub II LLC surviving as an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab. The second step of the Transaction would occur if Rocket Lab stock represents at least 40 percent of the total value of the consideration received by Iridium stockholders in the Transaction. Id. at 13 n.30. Iridium is a satellite operator and provider of mobile-satellite service (MSS) to more than 2.55 million subscribers worldwide. See id. at 7. Iridium’s constellation of 66 satellites in low-Earth orbit, and accompanying user terminals and feeder-link ground stations, operate in the 1617.775-1626.5 MHz band to provide global voice and data services—including Internet of Things (IoT) and maritime and aviation connectivity—to consumers, businesses, and government customers. See id. at 7-8. Iridium’s total 8.725 megahertz of spectrum in the L-band, comprised of an unpaired 7.775 megahertz of dedicated spectrum and nearly one megahertz of shared spectrum with Globalstar, The spectrum shared with Globalstar is 1617.775-1618.725 MHz. Id. at 7. allows for Iridium and its subsidiaries to provide communications and data services to the U.S. government and provide space-based global aircraft tracking services. Id. Iridium Carrier Services LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Iridium, holds an international section 214 authorization that will be transferred to Rocket Lab as part of the Transaction. Iridium subsidiaries also hold one space station license, six earth station licenses, and a number of experimental licenses and authorizations, control of which will transfer to Rocket Lab. Rocket Lab is a publicly traded company involved in “end-to-end” space services. The Applicants state that Rocket Lab has seven board members, that each director votes independently, and that the Board of Directors holds collective responsibility over the company’s strategy and operations. Id. at 2 n.5. It designs, manufactures, and launches spacecraft and performs on-orbit management. Id. at 3. Rocket Lab operates three launch pads—one at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and two privately owned launch pads in New Zealand Id. at 6. The Applicants state that Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually, that approximately 30% of spacecraft launched in 2024 integrated Rocket Lab technology, and that overall more than 1,700 satellite missions have incorporated Rocket Lab technology or components. Id. at 5. —in addition to a manufacturing complex in Long Beach and solar-array production facility in Albuquerque. Id. at 4. Rocket Lab served as the lead designer and manufacturer of 17 spacecraft buses for the Globalstar MSS constellation’s next-generation satellites and is developing its associated satellite operations control software. Id. On June 28, 2026, Rocket Lab and Iridium entered into an agreement and plan of merger under which Rocket Lab would acquire control of Iridium and its subsidiaries. Id. at 12. The transaction would be effectuated by Ion Merger Sub I, LLC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab, merging with and into Iridium, with Iridium surviving the merger as an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab. Id. at 12-13. The Applicants state that, in certain circumstances, the transaction would include a second step. As part of that second step, Iridium, as the surviving corporation of the first step, would merge with and into Ion Merger Sub II, LLC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab, with Ion Merger Sub II LLC surviving as an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Rocket Lab. The second step of the Transaction would occur if Rocket Lab stock represents at least 40 percent of the total value of the consideration received by Iridium stockholders in the Transaction. Id. at 13 n. 30. The Applicants assert that grant of the Applications would serve the public interest by enabling a better-financed, vertically integrated satellite operator that will accelerate the deployment of a next-generation Iridium constellation and enhance Iridium’s provision of services including Direct-to-Device, Position, Navigation, and Timing, and satellite IoT. See id. at 15-35. The Applicants also assert that the transaction does not pose a risk of competitive harm in either the MSS market or the upstream launch or satellite manufacturing markets, See id. at 35-37. and therefore will not reduce competition or result in the loss of a competitor in the satellite communications services market. The Applicants state that Rocket Lab does not have any 10% or greater foreign ownership See id. at Exh. B. and claim that the Transaction complies with all limitations on foreign ownership under section 310 of the Act and would not otherwise conflict with any applicable provisions of the Communications or the Commission’s rules. The Applicants further do not request any waivers of the Commission’s rules. The Applicants state that the “[t]ransaction is also subject to notification to the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector (or Team Telecom) pursuant to Iridium’s Network Security Agreement (NSA).” Attachment 1 at 6, n. 4.   The Applicants further state that, “[p]ost-consummation, the NSA will continue to apply to Iridium and its affiliates.” See id. Pursuant to our procedures, we do not refer the application to the Committee but provide a courtesy copy. GENERAL INFORMATION Comment Period and Filing Requirements. Interested parties may file pleadings on or before the dates indicated on the first page of this document. All filings may be filed using the Commission’s Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS). Filings should refer to Docket Number GN 26-257 when filing in response to this Public Notice. · Electronic Filers: Comments may be filed electronically by accessing ECFS at http://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/. · Paper filers: Parties who choose to file by paper must file an original and one copy of each filing. o Filings can be sent by hand or messenger delivery, or by commercial courier, or by the U.S. Postal Service. All filings must be addressed to the Secretary, Federal Communications Commission. o Hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings for the Commission’s Secretary are accepted between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. by the FCC’s mailing contractor at 9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. All hand deliveries must be held together with rubber bands or fasteners. Any envelopes and boxes must be disposed of before entering the building. o Commercial courier deliveries (any deliveries not by the U.S. Postal Service) must be sent to 9050 Junction Drive, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701. o Filings sent by U.S. Postal Service First-Class Mail, Priority Mail, and Priority Mail Express must be sent to 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554. People with Disabilities. To request materials in accessible formats for people with disabilities (braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice). Ex Parte Rules. Pursuant to section 1.1200(a) of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR § 1.1200(a). the Commission may adopt modified or more stringent ex parte procedures in particular proceedings if the public interest so requires. We announce that this proceeding will be governed by permit-but-disclose ex parte procedures that are applicable to non-restricted proceedings under section 1.1206 of the Commission’s rules. 47 CFR § 1.1206. This proceeding shall be treated as a “permit-but-disclose” proceeding in accordance with the Commission’s ex parte rules. 47 CFR §§ 1.1200 et seq. Entities or persons making ex parte presentations must file a copy of any written presentation or a memorandum summarizing any oral presentation within two business days after the presentation (unless a different deadline applicable to the Sunshine period applies). Entities or persons making oral ex parte presentations are reminded that memoranda summarizing the presentation must: (1) list all persons attending or otherwise participating in the meeting at which the ex parte presentation was made; and (2) summarize all data presented and arguments made during the presentation. If the presentation consisted in whole or in part of the presentation of data or arguments already reflected in the presenter’s written comments, memoranda or other filings in the proceeding, the presenter may provide citations to such data or arguments in his or her prior comments, memoranda, or other filings (specifying the relevant page and/or paragraph numbers where such data or arguments can be found) in lieu of summarizing them in the memorandum. Documents shown or given to Commission staff during ex parte meetings are deemed to be written ex parte presentations and must be filed consistent with rule 1.1206(b). In proceedings governed by rule 1.49(f) or for which the Commission has made available a method of electronic filing, written ex parte presentations and memoranda summarizing oral ex parte presentations, and all attachments thereto, must be filed through the electronic comment filing system available for that proceeding, and must be filed in their native format (e.g., .doc, .xml, .ppt, searchable .pdf). 47 CFR § 1.1206(b). Participants in this proceeding should familiarize themselves with the Commission’s ex parte rules. To allow the Commission to consider fully all substantive issues regarding the application in as timely and efficient a manner as possible, petitioners and commenters should raise all issues in their initial filings. New issues may not be raised in responses or replies. See 47 CFR § 1.45(c). A party or interested person seeking to raise a new issue after the pleading cycle has closed must show good cause why it was not possible for it to have raised the issue previously. Submissions after the pleading cycle has closed that seek to raise new issues based on new facts or newly discovered facts should be filed within 15 days after such facts are discovered. Absent such a showing of good cause, any issues not timely raised may be disregarded by the Commission. One copy of each pleading, ex parte submission, or other filing must be delivered electronically, by email, or if delivered as paper copy, by commercial overnight courier, or by first-class or overnight U.S. Postal Service mail (according to the procedures set forth above for paper filings), to: (1) Stephen Duall, Space Bureau, stephen.duall@fcc.gov; (2) Aleksandr Yankelevich, Office of Economics and Analytics, aleks.yankelevich@fcc.gov; (3) Thomas Struble, Office of Engineering & Technology, thomas.struble@fcc.gov; (4) Brenda Villanueva, Office of International Affairs, brenda.villanueva@fcc.gov; and (6) Joel Rabinovitz, Office of General Counsel, at TransactionTeam@fcc.gov. Any submission emailed to these individuals should include in the subject line of the email: (1) GN Docket Number 26-257 (2) the name of the submitting party; and (3) a brief description or title identifying the type of document being submitted (e.g., XX Docket Number 26-###; Widget Corp., Notice of Ex Parte Communications). – FCC – Federal Communications Commission "FCC/DA XX-XXX" ATTACHMENT The Applicants request that any Commission approval also authorize Rocket Lab to acquire control of (i) any additional licenses and authorizations issued to Iridium prior to grant of the instant Applications or during the period required for consummation to the Transaction following grant; (ii) any applications (including applications for special temporary authority) or other filings that have been or may be submitted by Iridium and are pending at the time of consummation of the Transaction; and (iii) any authorizations inadvertently omitted from the Applications. Narrative at 3. Part 5 – Experimental Licenses File Number Licensee Lead Call Sign 0163-EX-TU-2026 Iridium Satellite LLC WM2XRV Part 25 – Space Station License File Number Licensee Call Sign SAT-T/C-20260720-00302 Iridium Constellation LLC S2110 Part 25 – Earth Station Licenses File Number Licensee Lead Call Sign SES-T/C-20260718-02052 Iridium Satellite LLC E050282 SES-T/C-20260718-02053 Iridium Constellation LLC E960244 SES-T/C-20260720-02056 Iridium Carrier Services LLC E960622 Part 63 – International Section 214 Authorization File Number Licensee Authorization ITC-T/C-20260720-00206 Iridium Carrier Services LLC ITC-214-19971105-00686 2