Telesat Phase 1 LEO satellite. Photo: Surrey Satellite Technology

ThinKom Solutions and Telesat will jointly develop a Ka-band enterprise user terminal for Telesat’s planned Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation of satellites. As an initial step in the process, ThinKom’s ThinAir Ka2517 phased array antenna system, which is currently in production for commercial and government In-Flight Connectivity (IFC), will be used for over-the-air testing on Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite over the next few months.

Telesat’s  LEO constellation will combine the company’s global spectrum rights in Ka-band with Telesat’s proprietary LEO architecture. The constellation will deliver a combination of capacity, speed, security, resiliency, latency, and low cost. Telesat’s LEO constellation will accelerate 4G/5G expansion and bring fiber-like high-speed services into rural and remote communities.

ThinKom and Telesat will collaborate in the development of a new Telesat LEO-compliant enterprise terminal for terrestrial applications. Building on ThinKom’s antenna technology and Telesat’s commercial and technical expertise in satellite communications, the new terminal will be cost effective while delivering high-performance connectivity for applications including mobile backhaul, Wi-Fi hotspots, isolated cable and Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks, and remote institutions.