GSAT-11
| Company type | Communications satellite |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Headquarters | India |
| Products | Geostationary communications satellite services |
GSAT-11 stands as India's most massive geostationary communications satellite, with a launch mass of 5854 kg. It is constructed on the innovative I-6K platform and is equipped with 40 transponders functioning across Ku-band and Ka-band frequencies (comprising 32 Ka × Ku-Band Forward Link and 8 Ku × Ka band Return Link), enabling a maximum data transmission capacity of 16 Gbit/s. This satellite significantly boosts India's telecommunication capabilities through its cutting-edge high-throughput technology.
Launch
Originally planned for deployment in May 2018, the satellite's launch was postponed after ISRO withdrew it from the French Guiana launch facility to perform additional inspections. This precaution followed the March 2018 communication failure experienced by another satellite, GSAT-6A. After receiving clearance, the launch was rescheduled to 4 December 2018. GSAT-11 was successfully placed into orbit from the Guiana Space Center at 20:37 UTC on that date, sharing the launch vehicle with KARI's GEO-KOMPSAT-2A.
Satellite
The development of GSAT-11 incurred an expenditure of Rs. 579 Crores, while its launch services were contracted for Rs. 810.94 Crores. Its payload features 40 powerful transponders operating in the Ku and Ka bands, which were fabricated at the Space Applications Centre located in Ahmedabad.