Lockheed Martin, Arabsat and KACST reach milestone on Arabsat 6A and Hellas-Sat-4/SaudiGeoSat-1 satellite production

Lockheed Martin, Arab Satellite Communications Organization and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) announced on May 31 that they have successfully completed a comprehensive technical review of Arabsat 6A and Hellas-Sat-4/SaudiGeoSat-1, two satellites that will provide television, internet, telephone and secure communications, to customers in the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

To achieve this milestone, Bethesda, MD-based Lockheed Martin completed the Critical Design Review of the satellite and each subsystem, demonstrating the satellite design meets technical specifications and is ready for the next phase of production. With Critical Design Review complete and manufacturing underway, the Lockheed Martin team will now move further into the production process.

“Now that we’ve completed this intensive design review, we’re moving forward into the build, integration and test phase for Arabsat 6A and Hellas-Sat-4/SaudiGeoSat-1,” said Carl Marchetto, Lockheed Martin’s vice president and general manager of Commercial Space. “We’re already producing important components for the satellites including antenna reflectors, panels and the core structure, and are excited to continue manufacturing these important satellites.”

Arabsat 6A will be located at 30.5 degrees East and Hellas-Sat-4/SaudiGeoSat-1 will be located at 39 degrees East. Both satellites will be designed for a 15-year service life, and will be manufactured in Denver, Colorado. There are five modernized A2100 satellites currently under contract to Lockheed Martin and they are designed for a host of missions and customers around the globe.

Source: Lockheed Martin