Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu announced Tuesday that Türkiye will be dispatching its inaugural domestic and national communication satellite, Turksat 6A, to the U.S. at the beginning of June.
Talking about the satellite at the Space Systems Integration and Testing Center at the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) campus, Uraloglu said, “We have entered the process of launching Turksat 6A. Türkiye needs satellites for communication, television broadcasting, and both military and civilian communication. Türkiye currently has five communication and four observation satellites in space. With these, we meet our own needs while also providing services and presentations to neighboring countries.”
Uraloglu emphasized that they have manufactured the Turksat 6A satellite utilizing domestic resources and expertise, and they are scheduled to initiate the launch in July.
Speaking about the satellite’s production process and launch schedule, he said: “Communication is our most valuable asset, especially secure military communication. To ensure complete control and enhance national space capabilities, we have developed our first fully domestic communication satellite, Turksat 6A. This project involved training Turkish engineers using experience gained from previous satellites like Turksat 3A, 4A, and 5B. Remarkably, the satellite is nearly 90% locally produced. The launch is planned for sometime between July 8 and 14, after the satellite’s shipment to the United States in early June.”
Uraloglu highlighted that Turksat is the project’s primary coordinator and noted the involvement of TUBITAK UZAY (Tubitak Space), Aselsan, and CTECH in the manufacturing process.
Highlighting the involvement of thousands of engineers in the production process, Uraloglu said, “They worked in certain time frames according to their production and interest areas. Thousands of engineers and technicians have contributed to this.”
Turksat 6A to cover 4 new countries
Uraloglu emphasized that satellites generally have a lifespan of 15 years, indicating that when this period expires, existing satellites need to be replaced with new ones.
Stating that expired satellites are left in suitable orbits in space, Uraloglu said: “New satellites are necessary for developing technology, higher-quality communication, and new coverage areas. Currently, our satellites cover Europe, the Middle East, Turkish Republics, parts of the Far East, and significant parts of Africa, mostly in the north.”
The Turksat 6A satellite will bring communication services to a new population of 1.5 billion people in India, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. This increases total coverage to over 5 billion, a substantial leap from the existing 3.5 billion. Turksat 6A strengthens the country’s ability to provide secure communication within the existing footprint. Additionally, the new satellite creates the potential for significant revenue growth. By offering communication services to these four countries, we can generate foreign currency if they choose to purchase them. The high demand for such services suggests a strong market for Turksat 6A’s capabilities.
Uraloglu emphasized that Türkiye is one of the 10 countries that produce the mentioned satellite and said, “We are ready to produce and sell this satellite to countries with satellite demand.”
Uraloglu also stated that Türkiye will have enough work in producing observation and radar satellites, as well as military-oriented satellites, noting, “By developing these technologies, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), Hurjets, Hurkuses, and similar systems, we are prepared to meet the needs of potential customers worldwide. Our dedicated management team and all our colleagues have tirelessly invested their efforts in this project, working around the clock.”
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Source: AA
