Bureau 1440 reports work on a new generation of Rassvet spacecraft

What happened

On 24 September 2026, Bureau 1440 deputy chief executive Dmitry Agafonov said during the Satcomrus industry conference that the company was developing a new generation of Rassvet spacecraft while continuing to refine the current generation. According to a report published that day by Vzglyad, Agafonov said both development efforts draw on real-time findings from tests conducted with customers.

The statement follows previously reported customer trials beginning in August 2026, recorded separately in LAT-RU-RAS-0009. This update concerns the spacecraft development programme, not a new customer trial or a newly demonstrated operational capability.

Evidence and limitations

Vzglyad reports Agafonov’s remarks from Satcomrus and attributes the development programme directly to him. The available report does not disclose the next-generation spacecraft’s technical specifications, production timetable, launch assignment, design maturity or measured performance. It does not independently verify engineering progress beyond the reported company statement. Customer-trial feedback is described as informing design changes, but no underlying test dataset or quantified improvements were released.

Confidence: High that the company publicly reported a next-generation development effort; insufficient evidence to assess technical maturity, schedule or performance.

Assessment

The announcement establishes a reported parallel development effort: refinement of the current Rassvet spacecraft and work on a subsequent generation informed by customer trials. It does not establish that a new spacecraft design has completed qualification or that any improved capability has been demonstrated.

Why it matters

The development effort provides a new indicator for tracking Rassvet’s engineering and industrial trajectory beyond initial launches and customer demonstrations. Future evidence to monitor includes published specifications, manufacturing milestones, qualification tests and confirmed launch assignments.

Sources

• Vzglyad, 24 September 2026 — contemporaneous report attributing the announcement to Bureau 1440 deputy chief executive Dmitry Agafonov at Satcomrus.