Telesat signed a $1.9 billion (U.S. dollar) contract with the government of Canada for Arctic military satcom connectivity and will expand the Lightspeed constellation by 69 satellites to fulfill the contract. Telesat will provide secure military Ka-band Arctic connectivity to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) for the Enhanced Satellite Communications Project – Polar (ESCP-P) program. Service is set to begin in 2028 alongside the service start of Telesat Lightspeed. Ramping Up Lightspeed InvestmentAdding 69 satellites expands the Telesat Lightspeed constellation from 156 satellites to 225 satellites that are fully funded. Telesat previously moved to add 500 MHz of Mil-Ka band spectrum to the Lightspeed program to support defense and sovereignty programs.