Rendering of SES 15. Photo: Boeing.

For its fifth launch of the year, Arianespace will use a Soyuz launcher to orbit SES 15 — the first all-electric Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellite for the European operator SES. This will mark Soyuz’ second mission in 2017 to Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) from the Guiana Space Center. VS17 will launch from the Soyuz Launch Complex (ELS) in Sinnamary, French Guiana.

According to Arianespace, the Launch Readiness Review (LRR) will take place on Wednesday, May 17, in Korou, to authorize the start of operations for the final countdown.

As the first hybrid satellite in SES’ fleet, SES 15 will offer a mix of wide beam coverage and high-throughput capacity. The satellite will provide additional Ku-band wide beams and Ku-band High-throughput Satellite (HTS) capability with connectivity to gateways in Ka-band.

According to SES, the satellite will serve the aeronautical sector and will enable other traffic-intensive data applications such as government, Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) networks and maritime.

Positioned at the new orbital location of 129 degrees west, SES 15 will offer coverage over North America, Mexico and Central America, stretching from Arctic Alaska to the south of Panama and from Hawaii to the Caribbean.