Turkey’s transport and infrastructure minister has provided a new launch date for Turksat 5B.
Quoting Adil Karaismailoglu, Hurriyet> reports that it will now take place next month rather than in January 2022, as had previously been announced. Karaismailoglu added that one of the main features of the communication satellite, which will be launched into an orbital slot of 42 degrees East, will be to increase Turkey’s Ka-band capacity 15-fold.
He also said that Turkey signed a contract for Turksat 5B satellite with Airbus Defence and Space (Airbus D&S) in order to ensure the redundancy of the satellite.
Turksat 5B will be launched by SpaceX on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral. Earlier, this year it also launched Turksat 5A.
The satellite will be in operation for 35 years and serve in a wide coverage area that includes the whole of the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Mediterranean, North and East Africa, Nigeria, South Africa and its close neighbouring countries as well as Turkey.
