Lockheed Martin has the contract for the Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation (B-SAT) and SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (SKY Perfect JSAT) of Japan to build their next geostationary broadcasting and telecommunications satellite.
The satellite, designated BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R, will be launched in the second quarter of 2011 aboard an Ariane 5 ECA launch vehicle provided by Arianespace. BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R’s two independent Ku-band payloads incorporate 12 direct broadcast channels and 12 fixed direct communication channels with uplink and downlink coverage over Japan. The spacecraft will be located at 110° East longitude after delivery in orbit.
BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R is required to meet a 15-year service life and will be designed with over 95 percent flight-proven components integrated into the highly reliable A2100A platform manufactured by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems (LMCSS), Newtown, Pennsylvania.
BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R is the third consecutive satellite order B-SAT has awarded to Lockheed Martin, and the fifth consecutive satellite order from SKY Perfect JSAT. Lockheed Martin successfully built and launched BSAT-3a in August 2007 and is currently manufacturing BSAT-3b, which is scheduled to launch in 2010. Lockheed Martin is currently building JCSAT-12, which is scheduled to launch in late 2009, and previously built JCSAT-9 through JCSAT- 11.
“Lockheed Martin has developed a strong relationship with B-SAT and SKY Perfect JSAT over the years and we are extremely pleased that they have once again entrusted Lockheed Martin to deliver their latest spacecraft,” said LMCSS Vice President and General Manager Marshall Byrd. “Lockheed Martin’s extensive use of flight-proven and flight-qualified components will deliver reliable performance well beyond the required mission life. Further, the A2100’s advanced flexible satellite architecture provides outstanding capabilities and ease of operation.”
“We have decided to procure the BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R spacecraft, which will bear an extremely critical role in Japan’s next generation satellite broadcasting in the BSS band, from Lockheed Martin,” said B-SAT President & CEO Kazuo Takenaka. “With this new satellite, which will be delivered to us by the end of May 2011, and BSAT-3a and BSAT-3b, we will move forward with our continued stable operations at 110° East. These spacecraft will be important digital satellite broadcasting infrastructure for Japan, and I believe they will help our business soar.”
“Spurred by the rapid increase in the direct-to-home (DTH) subscribers in Japan, SKY Perfect JSAT needs to create a reserve satellite system using a communications satellite at 110° east longitude (broadcasting and telecommunications hybrid satellite) and continue to offer highly reliable broadcasting and high-quality services,” said SKY Perfect JSAT President and Chief Executive Officer Masanori Akiyama.
The Lockheed Martin A2100 geosynchronous spacecraft series is designed to meet a wide variety of telecommunications needs including Ka-band broadband and broadcast services, fixed satellite services in C-band and Ku-band, high- power direct broadcast services using the Ku-band frequency spectrum and mobile satellite services using UHF, L-band, and S-band payloads. The A2100’s modular design features a reduction in parts, simplified construction, increased on-orbit reliability and reduced weight and cost.
The A2100 spacecraft design accommodates a large range of payloads. The A2100 serves as the platform for critical Lockheed Martin government communications programs such as the Advanced Extremely High Frequency program and the Mobile User Objective System, and is the foundation for the company’s Transformational Satellite Communications System (TSAT) offering. The A2100 also serves as the spacecraft platform for Lockheed Martin’s GPS III and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Series-R (GOES-R) programs.
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