MOSCOW, May 14. /TASS/. Russia’s Rassvet satellite constellation developed by Bureau 1440 (part of X Holding) is not a copy or a complete analogue of the American Starlink, Alexey Shelobkov, CEO of X Holding and the Russian aerospace company Bureau 1440, stated in an interview with RBC.

"Comparisons with Starlink are a natural market reaction to the emergence of a new technology. But we need to look more broadly--at communications as a whole. <...> We’re currently discussing the transition to a new communications standard, and as often happens, whoever does something first becomes associated with that technology for a long time. But we must understand that each successive company won’t simply repeat what the previous one did: it will drive the development of communications forward. This will be a logical development of technologies and architecture, not copies or replicas," the expert noted.

According to him, Bureau 1440 develops all key technologies, systems, and components in-house. Shelobkov emphasized that Russian specialists do not copy, but develop their own world-class technologies, which creates true independence and manageable economics of the project.

At the same time, comparing the path of Bureau 1440 and Starlink, the Russian company’s network architecture is built on 5G NTN, which could take the further development of communications and device connectivity to a completely new level. Another difference lies in the business component. Thus, the Rassvet constellation is being created as an industrial platform for the Russian digital economy - transportation, industry, telecom operators, and remote areas of the country.

In late March, Bureau 1440 successfully launched the first 16 satellites of the Rassvet low-Earth orbit satellite constellation. The spacecraft feature a communication system based on 5G NTN architecture, an upgraded power supply system, next-generation inter-satellite laser communication terminals, and a plasma propulsion system.