Method and apparatus for switching spread spectrum/code division multiple access modulated beams

Switching of traffic channels within spread spectrum beams is performed in a satellite without buffering of the individual signals. Individual satellite beams carrying spread spectrum user RF signals from a plurality of customer premise equipments are received by radio receivers of a satellite switch and downconverted to IF signals. Traffic channel recovery is performed immediately after the down conversion and digital encoding and decoding is performed to route each channel to an appropriate outbound satellite beam. Traffic channel recovery is by despreading and filtering followed by respreading to uniquely identify each user signal so it may be recovered at its end destination. Further spreading uniquely identifies the user signal with an outbound satellite beam going to the intended destination of the user signal.