Orbital to build commercial satellite for Avanti Communications

Dulles, Virginia – Orbital Sciences Corp. has been awarded a firm contract from Avanti Communications Group plc. to build the HYLAS 4 broadband communications satellite. Based on Orbital’s GEOStar-3 satellite platform, the HYLAS 4 satellite will be designed, manufactured, and tested at Orbital’s satellite manufacturing facility in Dulles, Va.

 

The satellite will deliver up to 28 GHz of capacity in 66 fixed beams positioned over Africa and Europe. A portion of the HYLAS 4 capacity will provide growth for Avanti’s existing markets with the remainder available for initiating service to new coverage areas. HYLAS 4 is designed with four steerable beams that also could serve markets in Latin America or Africa. It is planned for launch by Arianespace in early 2017. HYLAS 4 will be the 27th Orbital-built satellite launched into orbit aboard an Ariane rocket. 

 

David Williams, Avanti’s chief executive officer, said, “We are pleased to have awarded a contract to Orbital as the manufacturer of our fourth communications satellite. Orbital did an excellent job providing us with the HYLAS 2 spacecraft, our first high-throughput all-Ka-band satellite, which has outperformed its technical specifications since its launch in 2012. We are pleased to once again count on a trusted supplier for the new HYLAS 4 satellite. Orbital’s GEOStar-3 satellite platform, with its enhanced payload capabilities, will help Avanti significantly expand its satellite fleet and services in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.”

 

The HYLAS 4 satellite’s payload will offer Ka-band services across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with significantly more capacity than the HYLAS 2 satellite that Orbital built and delivered for Avanti in 2012. In addition, the GEOStar-3-based HYLAS 4 spacecraft will provide Avanti the benefits of higher payload capability while still maintaining advantageous launch costs.

 

Commenting on the new contract award, David W. Thompson, Orbital’s chairman and chief executive officer said, “Orbital is honored and thrilled to be selected by David Williams and his team at Avanti to build their new HYLAS 4 satellite. This high-throughput/light-weight satellite will set a new standard for affordability and flexibility in its class, while also providing the high quality and dependability of Orbital’s reliable GEOStar product line of over 45 geosynchronous spacecraft built or in production for many of the world’s leading operators. We look forward to contributing to Avanti’s future growth with the HYLAS 4 project.”

 

Orbital’s GEOStar design is optimized for satellite missions requiring up to 8kW of payload power. 

 

Avanti’s network consists of two high-throughput satellites in orbit, HYLAS 1 and HYLAS 2, a multiband satellite called Artemis, plus a fourth and a fifth satellite in construction called HYLAS 3 and HYLAS 4, as well as an international fiber network connecting data centers in several countries.