The EchoStar 105/ SES-11 satellite was successfully launched into space on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
This is the second time SES has launched on a flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket, and the fourth launch with SpaceX. SES was the first commercial customer to launch on a Falcon 9 in 2013.
Built by Airbus, EchoStar 105/ SES-11 is a dual-mission satellite, providing SES with a C-band payload of 24 transponders of 36 MHz, owned and operated by SES, marketed under the name SES-11, and EchoStar with 24 Ku-band transponders of 36 MHz, marketed as EchoStar 105. The high-powered communications satellite replaces C-band capacity for AMC-18 and Ku-band capacity for AMC-15 at the 105 degrees West orbital slot.
SES-11 is designed to accelerate the development of the US Prime video neighbourhood and the delivery of high definition (HD) and ultra-high definition (UHD) channels. It offers comprehensive coverage over North America, including Hawaii, Mexico and the Caribbean. The satellite’s C-band capacity is optimised for digital television delivery, and will join SES-1 and SES-3 at the centre of SES’s North American orbital arc which reaches more than 100 million TV homes and 100% penetration in the US.
SES-11 will be utilised for the expansion of SES’s North America Ultra HD platform, which hosts the world’s largest Ultra HD bouquet of 10 Ultra HD channels and reaches a combined audience of more than 10 million subscribers.
SES-11 will also empower business and government customers to capture new opportunities and expand their reach across the region.
“The successful launch of SES-11 further strengthens the centre of SES’s North American orbital arc and enables us to continue to provide a premium C-band service to the leading cable operators across the US,” said Martin Halliwell, CTO of SES.
“We are also proud to launch on another SpaceX flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket and to continuously participate in innovative technology developments within the launch industry.”
“We are pleased to continue working together with SES, a company that strongly supports innovation and SpaceX’s proven launch capabilities,” said Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO at SpaceX,
