In have contracted Boeing, the US aerospace manufacturer, to build a new constellation of Inmarsat-5 satellites – part of a new US$1.2 billion worldwide wireless broadband network called Inmarsat Global Xpress™.
Boeing will construct three Inmarsat-5 (I-5) satellites based on its 702HP spacecraft platform. The first is scheduled for completion in 2013, with full global coverage expected by the end of 2014.
High frequency
The spacecraft will break new ground by transmitting in a portion of the radio spectrum never before utilised by the commercial operator of a global satellite system – the extremely high frequency Ka-band.
Each Inmarsat-5 will carry a payload of 89 Ka-band beams - capable of flexing capacity across the globe and enabling Inmarsat to adapt to shifting subscriber usage patterns over their projected lifetime of 15 years
usage patterns over their projected lifetime of 15 years.
Extra bandwidth
The Inmarsat Global Xpress™ network will take advantage of the additional bandwidth available in the Ka-band to offer download rates of 50Mbps and upload speeds of 5Mbps from mobile user terminals as small as 60cms.
Services will be tailored initially for the government, energy and maritime markets.
Range of services
The Inmarsat-5s will operate independently from our L-band satellites offering complementary services for a wide range of mobile and fixed solutions.
