TAQNIA SPACE Aero services’ platform following an agreement between Eutelsat and TAQNIA SPACE, owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia. The multi-million dollar multi-year deal covers spotbeam capacity on the EUTELSAT 3B satellite in order to provide HTS connectivity services to Taqnia Space Airline clients over MENA, Mediterranean and European regions.
Bandwidth on EUTELSAT 3B will support live TV, onboard voice / GSM and broadband connectivity from third quarter 2017 on commercial aircraft connected to the TSC Aero platform. Saudi Arabian Airlines, one of the leading airlines in the Middle East, will be the first commercial airline connected to the TSC Aero platform, with more than 100 medium and long-haul aircraft. Passengers will enjoy the Taqnia Space Connectivity package through their devices – laptops, tablets, smartphones – on domestic flights over Saudi Arabia and international flights over MENA, the Mediterranean and Europe.
His Excellency the CEO of Taqnia Space company, Engineer Abdullah Al-Osaimi, commented: “This cooperation with Eutelsat empowers Taqnia Space in the fast-changing landscape of inflight services. It supports our strategy to expand our TSC Aero platform to global coverage and capacity in order to satisfy demand driven by regional and international commercial airlines. Adding EUTELSAT 3B satellite capacity to the TSC Aero platform is a continuation of a growth plan initiated a few years back with the 5C satellite over the Middle East that will be followed by two major satellite projects, SGS-1 (2018) and 6D (2019).”
“Having the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) as the prime technology and R&D partner in the TSC Aero platform project provided invaluable support to the development of the first Saudi Aero Satellite Service Solution” added Al-Osaimi.
Taqnia Space will use four High Throughput Ka-band spotbeams on the EUTELSAT 3B satellite that have been steered by Eutelsat to cover flight paths extending from London to Saudi Arabia and from Casablanca to Oman.
Rodolphe Belmer, CEO of Eutelsat, concluded: “Satellite technology naturally comes into play in the in-flight connectivity market thanks to its ability to deliver a best-in-class service across large territories. We are delighted that the efficiency that can be achieved with the Ka-band multi-beam configuration on EUTELSAT 3B has won the confidence of Taqnia. This venture is an opportunity for long-term cooperation with a major player in Saudi Arabia’s innovation development ecosystem.”
Add Comment