International Launch Services (ILS) has signed a contract to launch Eutelsat’s W3D satellite on its Proton rocket in 2013.
The W3D satellite, which is designed on the Spacebus 4000 C3 platform, has been built by Thales Alenia Space and will have a service life of 15 years.
The satellite will be located at 7° East to offer high-power Ku-band coverage of Europe and Turkey for direct-to-home (DTH) service, and Ku-band coverage across Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia for video links and data networks.
In addition, the W3D satellite will also offer Ku-band coverage of Sub-Saharan Africa and Indian Ocean islands for telecommunications and internet services.
