Global communications company Viasat has confirmed that the scheduled launch date for the ViaSat-3 Americas satellite is 18 April this year. The ViaSat-3 satellite will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
The satellite will be sent into geostationary transfer orbit by the launch vehicle and will provide broadband services from an orbital slot located at 88.9° west longitude.
Viasat says The ViaSat-3 class of Ka-band satellites is expected to provide the best bandwidth economics in the industry with substantial flexibility to move and concentrate that capacity virtually anywhere there is demand – whether it is on land, in the ocean or in the air.
The first two satellites are planned to focus on the Americas and on EMEA, respectively; the ViaSat-3 EMEA satellite is now in environmental testing in Boeing’s El Segundo, California factory. The third ViaSat-3 satellite is now undergoing final payload integration and testing at Viasat’s Tempe, Arizona facility and will focus on the Asia -Pacific region, completing Viasat’s global service coverage.
ViaSat-3 is planned to be a global satellite constellation consisting of three high-capacity Ka-band satellites that is expected to increase the coverage and capacity of the Viasat network to bring high-quality, low-cost connectivity where it is needed most.
With the ViaSat-3 constellation, Viasat says it anticipates being capable of delivering bandwidth economics superior to that of any other space-based provider.
