Inmarsat Global Xpress Now Provides Full Global Coverage
The third Inmarsat Inc., Global Xpress satellite is now fully operational after reaching its final orbital position. Activation of the third satellite in a fleet of three provides complete global coverage of the company’s program to heighten global communication capabilities on land, at sea and in the air.
The third Inmarsat Inc., Global Xpress satellite is now fully operational after reaching its final orbital position. Activation of the third satellite in a fleet of three provides complete global coverage of the company’s program to heighten global communication capabilities on land, at sea and in the air, according to a company statement.
Inmarsat-5 (I-5) F3 provides satellite communications coverage from its position over the Pacific Ocean. It launched in August after a two-month delay caused by the failure in May of the Khrunichev-International Launch Services Russian Proton rocket as it dispatched a Mexican communications satellite.
All three Global Xpress satellites now have achieved full operational capability to support government missions. I-5 F1 became operational in July 2014 and is positioned over the Indian Ocean covering Europe, the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia. I-5 F2 become operational in August and will cover the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean. Five years ago, Inmarsat embarked on a $1.6 billion effort to provide a single global Ka-band network of satellites. Boeing Satellite Systems International is building the Global Xpress constellation at its El Segundo, California, facility on the same manufacturing line as the Wideband Global SATCOM for the U.S. government.
Inmarsat plans to launch I-5 F4, designed as an in-orbit spare to Global Xpress and is expected to be launched in late 2016 aboard a SpaceX system.
