ANKARA
Before the launch of Turkey's fifth telecommunication satellite Friday, the country's Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Minister visited the Turksat 4A's launching platform and examined the progress.
After examining the progress, Lutfi Elvan told an Anadolu Agency correspondent, “We will launch Turksat 4A tonight. After launching Turksat 4A, in whose construction Turkish engineers and technicians participated, we will send Turksat 4B in the second half of this year.”
The TURKSAT 4A Communication Satellite, which will be launched from the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan at 23:09 (Turkish local time), is expected to cover the entire African continent with television broadcasts and satellite communication signals.
It will have a total launch mass of 4,850 kilograms, capable of providing 15kW of power to facilitate powerful communication payloads for mission durations of 15 years and beyond.
TURKSAT 4B, Turkey´s sixth satellite, will be launched in the second quarter of this year. Officials say Internet service provider fees will be fifty percent cheaper in the country with TURKSAT 4B.
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