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HellasSat (a member of the Arabsat Group) has announced the successful launch of the HellasSat (HS)-3-IS satellite aboard an Ariane 5 launch vehicle from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, in the presence of H.E. the Minister of Digital Policy, Communications, and Media of Greece, Mr. Nikos Pappas, and H.E. the Minister of Transport, Communications, and Works of Cyprus, Mr. Marios Demetriades.
The Ariane 5 liftoff occurred at 11:08 Athens time on June 28, 2017, carrying the HS3-IS satellite that was built by Thales Alenia Space. HS3-IS will be maintaining and expanding direct-to-home (DTH) and telecom services for the HellasSat business reach in Europe, Middle East, and Africa from the orbital position of 39 degrees East.
Christodoulos Protopapas, CEO of HellasSat, stated, ” We express our gratitude to the governments of Greece and Cyprus, the members of the board of directors, and the management of Arabsat for their valuable support on the HellasSat satellite programmes. The growth of the HellasSat fleet with the addition of the HellasSat-3 satellite will expand our business opportunities in Europe, Middle East, and South Africa, providing to our customers with state of the art satellite communications”
The Minister of Digital Policy, Communications, and Media of Greece, Mr. Nikos Pappas, stated, “We are very delighted for this special moment for Greece. We watched the launch of the HellasSat-3, now travelling to the Greek orbital position, from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana. With the establishment of the Hellenic Space Organization and the expanded technological capabilities of HellasSat-3 our country is recovering from a field that has been abandoned for years. Today, we turn the page in Greece’s space policy. We are exploiting the possibilities offered by the existence of a satellite in the Greek orbital position both commercially and scientifically-research for commercial benefit and for the whole of the Greek society. ”
The Minister of Transport, Communications, and Works of Cyprus, Mr. Marios Demetriades, stated, “I welcome the launch of HellasSat-3, one of the largest European satellites ever built. I would like to congratulate the satellite manufacturer, the management, the programme manager and the Hellas Sat engineers who have completed within schedule the construction of such a technologically complex satellite. My sincere gratitude to the Arabsat board of directors and to the government of Greece which in cooperation with the government of Cyprus have provided unlimited support to the Hellas Sat satellite programme.”
The General Secretary for Telecommunications and Post of Greece, Mr. Vasilios Maglaras, stated, “The new satellite will replace the existing HellasSat-2 satellite and will perform first time activation of new Greek satellite spectrum, increasing our country’s space rights. This private investment of hundreds of millions will benefit the country’s telecoms, strengthen and enhance our space position, and contribute to the development of the country’s space potential. ”
Hellas Sat was established in 2001 as the national satellite operator for the countries of Greece and Cyprus. From 2013 it has been a subsidiary of ARABSAT. It offers from the orbital position of 39 degrees East state of the art, reliable, and redundant satellite communications covering Europe, Middle East, and South Africa. With Teleports in Greece and Cyprus, Hellas Sat offers end-to-end satellite services to many customers and strategic partners.
Original published at: https://spacewatch.global/2017/07/hellassat-3-satellite-successfully-launched-arianespace/
