Artist rendition of the AMOS E satellite. Photo: Israel Aerospace Industries

[Via Satellite 10-14-2015] Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) reports it is currently in the advanced stages of a new lightweight communications satellite, Amos E. The spacecraft has a projected weight of 1.5 to 2 tons, and is designed to provide a range of communication services such as broadband Internet, TV and more. The satellite uses electric propulsion to effectively halve its weight, contributing to lower launch costs.

“The product line, which will be based on Amos E, allows IAI to enter new market segments in the field of communications satellites and to offer complete satellite operation capabilities at a competitive price. The new satellite is generating great interest among potential customers,” said Opher Doron, general manager of IAI’s space division.

IAI is currently building Spacecom’s Amos 6 satellite, for which Eutelsat and Facebook are leasing the high throughput payload. The satellite manufacturer is also producing an Optsat 3000 observation satellite for Italy, and a scientific Venus-bound observation satellite for the Israeli and French space agencies. Additionally, IAI is producing Eros-C, a high-resolution imagery satellite for ImageSat International (ISI), and a Tescsar Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite, both planned for launch from 2018 onwards.