CAPE CANAVERAL, FL – Telesat confirmed the successful launch of its new Telstar 18 Vantage high throughput satellite (HTS) Monday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
The third HTS in Telesat’s global fleet, Telstar 18 Vantage will replace and expand on the capabilities of Telesat’s Telstar 18 satellite with its extensive C-band capacity over Asia, its Ku-band HTS spot beams over Indonesia and Malaysia, and its five additional regional Ku-band beams.
Operating from 138 degrees East, the satellite’s coverage reaches across Asia all the way to Hawaii – in both C and Ku-band – enabling direct connectivity between any point in Asia and the Americas. Its Ku-band payloads of HTS spot beams and focused regional beams will provide customers operating in Southeast Asia, Mongolia, Australia and New Zealand, as well as the North Pacific Ocean with greater choice and flexibility to serve today’s bandwidth intensive applications, says the news release.
Telesat Vantage satellites combine focused regional beams with powerful HTS spot beams enabling users to maximize throughout and spectral efficiency while optimizing network performance. By implementing these advances on Telstar 18 Vantage, Telesat customers across the Asia Pacific region now have a competitive edge in meeting growing demand for satellite broadband from aero and maritime service providers, enterprise network operators and telecom companies, the release adds.
“Telstar 18 Vantage is the latest example of how Telesat’s innovative payload designs provide our customers with the advantages they need to compete successfully in today’s satellite service markets,” said Telesat president and CEO Dan Goldberg, in the release. “Telstar 18 Vantage is a state-of-the art spacecraft that not only replaces Telstar 18, a satellite in wide use across Asia and the Pacific, but brings far greater capabilities including Ku-band mobility coverage and HTS spot beams that will allow Telesat to grow our presence in the region.”
Telstar 18 Vantage is expected to enter commercial service after it has successfully completed orbit raising and comprehensive in-orbit testing. The satellite has a 15 year design life.
