The recent news of a deal between leading aerospace industry company Airbus and Al Yah Satellite Communications Company, a leading global satellite operator in the UAE, has been quickly followed by another contract announcement – this time involving L3Harris Technologies.
Last week Airbus was chosen to build Thuraya 4-NGS, the next generation mobile telecommunications system that will drive the continued advancement of Thuraya’s L-band business.
Thuraya 4-NGS will deliver higher capabilities and flexibility while increasing capacity and coverage across Europe, Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East, enabling next generation mobility solutions for all customer segments, including defence, government and enterprise.
This is described by Yahsat as a major milestone in its commitment to transforming Thuraya and rolling out its next-generation system, which entails a complete overhaul of its space and ground platforms, enabling a new set of services, products and solutions across a greater coverage area.
Based on the all-electric Airbus Eurostar Neo Platform, Thuraya 4-NGS will incorporate a large 12-metre L-band antenna and a payload with onboard processing providing advanced routing flexibility of up to 3200 channels with dynamic power allocation over a large number of spot beams. It is scheduled for operation in 2024.
Hard on the heels of this deal, Airbus has selected L3Harris Technologies to build a space reflector antenna for the Thuraya 4-NGS. The reflector antenna will be manufactured and tested at L3Harris facilities in Palm Bay, Florida.
Yahsat says its total committed investment to date includes an option with Airbus to build Thuraya 5-NGS, strengthening its coverage and capabilities across the Asia Pacific region.
