Archive for the ‘Arabsat’ Category
Arabsat-5A and BADR-5 satellites have been handed over to Arabsat by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space
The Arabsat-5A and BADR-5 satellites have been handed over to Arabsat by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, as part of the in-orbit delivery contract and have entered commercial service. Both satellites were deployed and tested in orbit in the same time period, due to their close launch dates.
Arabsat-5AAfter the successful completion of in-orbit testing, the BADR-3, which was launched via a Proton vehicle on June 3rd, was officially transferred to Arabsat on July 17th, at the designated orbital location. This event was followed shortly by Arabsat-5A, launched by an Ariane 5 onJune 26th and officially transferred to Arabsat on July 21st at the designated orbital location, less than one month after launch. Astrium and Thales Alenia Space are acting as co-prime contractors for the satellites’ construction and delivery into orbit. Astrium, the team leader, supplied the Eurostar E3000 platforms and assembled and tested the spacecraft. Thales Alenia Space supplied the communications payloads. The Launch and Early Orbit Phases were conducted from the Astrium spacecraft control centre in Toulouse, and the In-Orbit Testing from the Arabsat main control centre in Riyadh with the participation of the Arabsat control centre in Tunis. Arabsat’s first 5th generation satellites are now in commercial operation providing communications services.
BADR-5 is collocated with the BADR-4 and BADR-6 DTH satellites at Arabsat’s hot spot. BADR-5 provides the highest level of service within the MENA region as well as new services for the Central Asia region. BADR 5 provides capacity for more than 700 TV channels, HDTV, 3D, telecom services as well as providing a ful,l in orbit backup for the Arabsat fleet. BADR-5 is equipped with a payload that includes 56 transponders operating in different bands. Arabsat-5A is a multi-mission satellite which provides additional transmission capacity at the Arabsat orbital position for a wide range of satellite communications services, covering the African contenent, Central Asia, and Middle East regions. Arabsat-5A is a Eurostar E3000 satellite equipped with a payload that includes 50 active transponders operating in different bands.
Thales Alenia Space: Arabsat 5A telecommunication satellite has been successfully launched
Arabsat 5A telecommunication satellite has been successfully launched on June 27 by Arianespace form Kourou, in French Guyana, with an Ariane 5 rocket.
Arabsat 5A will provide a large range of satellite communications services for Middle East and Africa.
Arabsat 5A, a multi-mission satellite, will increase the capacity at the Arabsat 30.5º East position for a large range of satellite communications services such as television backhauling and broadcasting, telephony, business communications, Internet trunking and the provision of VSAT and other interactive services, over sub-Saharan Africa, the North-Africa and Middle East (MENA) region, and beyond.
Arabsat 5A was built by an industrial team of EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, acting as co-prime contractors. EADS Astrium, the team leader, supplied the Eurostar E3000 platform and assembled and tested the spacecraft. Thales Alenia Space supplied the communications payload featuring 26 active transponders in C-band and 24 in Ku-band.
Arabsat 5A has a launch mass of 4,800kg and a spacecraft power of 11kW at the end of its 15-year designed lifetime.
“When fully accepted in orbit, Arabsat 5A will be the eleventh Arabsat satellite provided by Thales Alenia Space or by the team formed by Thales Alenia Space and EADS Astrium “, said Reynald Seznec, CEO of Thales Alenia Space. “As a long-standing partner to the Arab Satellite Communications Organisation Arabsat, we are totally committed to supporting them in their sustainable future growth by delivering technologies with outstanding performance.”
Cooperation between Arabsat and Yahsat
The Arab Satellite Communications Organisation (Arabsat) and Yahsat holding talks to combine the reach of their satellites’ transmissions to cover a swathe of the region extending from Egypt to Pakistan.
Arabsat, a Saudi Arabia-based company established in 1976, has four satellites in orbit offering broadcast and other communications services, with three more on the way. Yahsat, a subsidiary of Mubadala Development, a strategic investment company owned by the Abu Dhabi Government, has plans to launch two satellites next year.
The president and chief executive of Arabsat Khalid Balkheyour said “We are talking to our friends at Yahsat to see how we can co-operate together to offer services to our common customers in the market,” He also said that “Competition helps us to drive our business better and we’re ready for Yahsat because the customer will benefit from a better quality and new services,”
Jassem al Zaabi, the chief executive of Yahsat, acknowledged the discussions but declined to comment further. He said only “Our approach is to explore synergies with comparable market players,”
Mr Balkheyour said ” as research suggests the Middle Eastern satellite broadband market will have 600,000 subscribers by 2015″.
Arabsat and Yahsat are each in discussions with regulators in several countries to offer telecoms services by the time they launch their satellites. The operators will either offer services to customers directly or licence them to a local partner.