Turkey has launched the first communication satellite of its own production, Turksat 6A, into orbit. According to Ankara, it will expand the country's satellite coverage and meet its television broadcasting needs, Reuters reports.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that the launch marked the opening of a "new stage" for Turkey in satellite production.
The satellite was launched from the Cape Canaveral Spaceport in Florida on the morning of July 9, 2024. Turksat 6A was launched into orbit by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Elon Musk's company on the X platform showed a video of how everything happened.
Liftoff of Falcon 9 and @Turksat 6A! pic.twitter.com/jCAhyHRmEC
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 8, 2024
Turkey's Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu noted that the first signal from the satellite was received 67 minutes after its launch. According to him, Turksat 6A will expand Turkey's satellite coverage to 5 billion people.
"We will have brought our own communications, our television broadcasts to a safer, better level," he emphasized and added.
The minister also said that Turksat 6A is the result of a 10-year effort to produce the satellite domestically.