JCSat-13, a Lockheed Martin-built commercial telecommunications satellite launched in May for Japan’s Sky Perfect JSat Corp., completed its on-orbit checkout and is ready to begin service, the Bethesda, Md.-based aerospace contractor announced July 10.
Carrying 44 Ku-band transponders and two steerable beams for television and telecommunications services, the 4,500-kilogram JCSat-13 will operate at 124 degrees east longitude.
The satellite was launched May 15 aboard a European Ariane 5-ECA rocket shared with Vinasat-2, a 24-Ku-band-transponder satellite owned by the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group.
Both JCSat-13 and Vinasat-2 were built using Lockheed Martin Space Systems’ A2100 satellite frame.
