Arabsat-1A
| Company type | Communications satellite |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Founded | February 8, 1985 |
| Founder | Arab Satellite Communications Organization |
| Products | Telecommunication services |
Arabsat-1A () was a communications satellite from Saudi Arabia, managed by the Arab Satellite Communications Organization. It delivered telecommunication services throughout the Arab States. Constructed by Aérospatiale utilizing the Spacebus 100 design, the satellite was equipped with two transponders operating in the NATO E/F-band (IEEE S band) and 25 transponders in the NATO G/H-Band (IEEE C band). At the time of launch, its weight was , and it was designed for a service duration of seven years.
The satellite was launched on 8 February 1985 at 23:22:00 UTC by Arianespace aboard an Ariane 3 vehicle from the ELA-1 launch site at the Kourou. Arabsat-1A marked the inaugural deployment in the Spacebus series. Shortly after liftoff, a malfunction in deploying one of its solar panels impaired its operational capability. It was stationed in a geosynchronous orbit at 19.0° East longitude. Due to failures in its gyroscopes, Arabsat-1A was withdrawn from primary service but remained available as a backup satellite. In September 1991, problems with attitude control caused it to drift eastward, eventually resulting in complete failure by March 1992.