The UK government's projects authority has sounded the alarm over progress on Skynet 6, the estimated £8.35 billion program to upgrade the military's satellite communications.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) rated the Skynet 6 project red, which means "successful delivery of the project appears to be unachievable" in its current form.

The definition cites "major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and/or benefits delivery, which at this stage do not appear to be manageable or resolvable."

A red confidence rating means the project may need to be rescoped or reassessed, but does not necessarily mean it will fail.

Nonetheless, it is hardly reassuring for a program intended to provide the UK's military satellite communications through 2041 and beyond.

Skynet has been around since the 1960s. The first satellite in the latest iteration, Skynet 6A, was originally due to launch in 2025 but is now scheduled to fly aboard a SpaceX rocket in 2027. It is being built by Airbus. The project also includes Service Delivery Wrap (SDW), which plans to operate the UK's constellation of military satellites and ground stations under a £400 million contract awarded to Babcock in 2023.

The wider program will also provide "new ground and user terminal capabilities to ensure that UK war fighters have modern communications technology worldwide," the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. A separate aspect of the project, Skynet Enduring Capability, is set to offer new space-based technology from 2028 onward.

NISTA, a joint unit reporting to the Treasury and Cabinet Office, said its confidence had fallen from last year's amber rating because department-wide recruitment and resourcing constraints had created workforce shortages, while "sub-par supplier performance continues to delay delivery of the first SKYNET 6 satellite."

The Register asked the MoD, Babcock, and Airbus to comment.

In 2022, the MoD told Parliament that the estimated cost of all elements of Skynet 6 over its 26-year lifecycle had risen from £7.1 billion to about £8.35 billion. Changes in technology and functionality, the need to address emerging risks, and rising space-sector prices all contributed to the increase, it said. ®