Telkom-3S communications satellite was delivered to Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on January 13^th. The satellite was encapsulated under the launcher's fairing on February 4^th. Built by Thales Alenia Space for the Indonesian operator PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia TbK (Telkom), Telkom-3S will be launched by an Ariane 5 launcher on Valentine’s Day (February 14). Positioned at 118° East, the satellite will boost the operator’s C-band capacity, and also offer Ku-band high-definition television broadcasting and GSM/Internet services. It offers a design life exceeding 15 years, and its footprint will cover Indonesia, Southeast Asia and part of Malaysia.

Thales Alenia Space won an international call for tenders from the operator PT. Telkom in July 2014. As satellite prime contractor, Thales Alenia Space is in charge of design, testing and in-orbit delivery of the satellite, along with the launch and early orbit phase (LEOP) and in-orbit testing (IOT). Thales Alenia Space also provided parts of the control center and trained engineers and technicians as part of this program.

Telkom-3S is the 80th telecom satellite built on a Spacebus platform (Spacebus 4000B2). Its deployment will enable PT Telkom to increase broadcast capacity, as well as providing key services for businesses, the interconnection of mobile networks and Internet backbones.

Copyrights:
Artistic view: © Thales Alenia Space/Master Image Programmes
Photos in the cleam rooms: © Thales Alenia Space/Imag[IN]