The contract was formally signed on 9 November 2019 between Turkey and Airbus Defence and Space for the construction of TURKSAT 5A and 5B. The manufacturer had been originally selected in October. The satellites will use the Eurostar E3000e (EOR) bus/platform, which mainly uses electric propulsion for orbit raising and station keeping. TURKSAT 5A will be a 3,500 kg (at launch) direct broadcast communications satellite with a power of 12 kW and will use its Ku-band payload to provide services from its 31 degree east longitude position in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO).
The spacecraft will be launched as part of an on-orbit delivery contract in 2020. The second spacecraft, TURKSAT 5B, will be larger at 4,500 kg at launch, which is expected to take place in 2021. The satellite will operate both Ku- and Ka-band payloads at the 42 east location in the GEO arc. It will be a “High Throughput Satellite” offering more than 50 Gbps to its clients in Turkey, the Middle East and Africa. The satellite will have an electrical power of 15 kW.
As an addendum, Airbus DS has confirmed that, with the approval of Turkey, both satellites will be launched on SpaceX Falcon 9 launches.
