Sri Lanka’s third nanosatellite, BIRDS-X Dragonfly, jointly developed by Japan’s Kyushu Institute of Technology (KIT) and Sri Lanka’s Arthur C. Clark Advanced Institute of Technology (ACCIMT), was launched to the International Space Station (ISS) on 24 August 2025 on the SPX-33 SpaceX mission.
The satellite is scheduled to be launched into orbit from the ISS on 19 September 2025 at 2:15 PM Sri Lanka Standard Time (SLST).
Following the country’s first nanosatellite, RAAVANA-1 (launched in 2019 as an ACCIMT–QTech collaboration) and KITSUNE (launched in 2022 as a five-party international collaborative venture coordinated by QTech with ACCIMT as a partner), BIRDS-X Dragonfly marks an important milestone in Sri Lanka’s quest for capacity development in space technology.
Importantly, BIRDS-X Dragonfly will come to Sri Lanka without any capital expenditure, which was made possible by the innovative approach adopted by the then Director General of ACCIMT, Eng. (Dr.) Sanath Panawana – the founder of the program to develop Sri Lanka’s space technology capacity, who implemented it as a Kyutech-ACCIMT technical-collaboration project and secured this agreement by securing funding from international partners based on the strategic and technical contributions of the Sri Lankan team.
The project was funded by a grant from the Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), and its launch and deployment will be facilitated by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), in line with the overall global mission objective of “bringing diversity to the space sector and democratizing the use of space”.
The project work began with the signing of a bilateral research agreement by the Director General of ACCIMT and the President of QTech on April 1, 2023.
BIRDS-X’s main mission
In-orbit testing of new communication subsystems – To explore affordable and reliable ground-to-space communications for future nano-satellite missions, testing a new low-cost UHF transmitter built using commercially available (COTS) components in space conditions.
APRS Digipeater – To provide a satellite-based platform for transmitting APRS (Automatic Packet Retrieval System) messages, enabling global amateur radio operators and researchers to experiment with satellite communications using their own digital designs.
Store-and-Forward Communications – To create a data relay system that can upload user messages, store them, and then download them to ground stations in different regions.
ACCIMT’s BIRDS-X Dragonfly Project Team
Eng. (Dr.) Sanath Panawana
(Former) Director General
(ACCIMT)
Eng. (Mrs. Kamani Edirweera
(Former) Deputy Director General
(Technical)
Eng. Kavindra Jayawardena
Director (Communication Engineering Division)
Eng. Tharindu Dayaratne,
Research Engineer (ACCIMT)
Eng. Kavindra Sampath,
Research Engineer (ACCIMT)
Thilina Wijebandara
Research Scientist (ACCIMT)
Eng. Uditha Gayan
Research Engineer (ACCIMT)
These professionals are the brains and the strength behind this mission. As a Sri Lankan nation, we should be proud and look forward to the future of these valuable individuals. Must be protected.
