After the Israeli government’s decision to subsidize Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to build the AMOS-8 communications satellite, Spacecom has informed U.S. satellite manufacturer Space Systems Loral (SSL) that it is cancelling its March 2018 contract for them to build the satellite.
Read More »Israeli Government To Subsidise Build Of AMOS-8 Communications Satellite By IAI; SSL Out Of The Running
The Israeli government has made the decision to subsidize Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in designing and building a communications satellite following the decision by Spacecom earlier this year to tap U.S. satellite manufacturer Space Systems Loral (SSL) to build its AMOS-8 satellite instead of giving the contract to IAI.
Read More »Israel’s Satcom Systems Ltd. Receives Buyout Offer From Liquid Telecom
African telecommunications company Liquid Telecom has made a U.S.$8 million bid to acquire Israeli company Satcom Systems Ltd., a subsidiary of the troubled Eurocom Group, and a sister company of Spacecom, the Israeli satellite communications company that operates the AMOS fleet.
Read More »Qatar’s Es’HailSat Purchases Satellite It Shared With Eutelsat
Qatar’s Es’hailSat satellite communications company has purchased outright the satellite it has been sharing with Eutelsat - EUTELSAT-25B/Es'hail-1 - taking full control of the satellite now just named Es'hail-1. The purchase comes as the Qatari company awaits the launch later this year of Es'hail-2, built by Japanese satellite manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric Company (MELCO).
Read More »Facebook Building LEO Broadband Satellite To Bridge Digital Divide In Africa
Social media giant Facebook has confirmed that one of its subsidiaries, PointView Tech LLC, is building a satellite dubbed Athena that will be placed in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) and provide Gigabite-quantity Internet services in digitally deprived areas such as Africa.
Read More »Israel To Be Fourth Country On The Moon in 2019 Thanks To SpaceIL
Israel’s SpaceIL has announced that it will launch its Moon probe on a SpaceX launch vehicle, to land in February 2019. If successful, the SpaceIL lunar mission will make Israel the fourth-ever country to land on the Moon, after the Soviet Union, U.S., and China.
Read More »Israel’s Spacecom Struggling To Come Up With AMOS-8 Deposit For Space Systems Loral
Israel’s Spacecom has again extended the time period it needs to raise funds for its initial deposit for U.S. Satellite manufacturer SpaceSystems/Loral (SSL) to build its AMOS-8 satellite, but the process – and payment -- has been mired in delays.
Read More »Israeli Government To Make Decision On Home-Grown Or U.S.-Built Satellite
The Israeli government will shortly come to a decision on the manufacturer for its own satellite - and this has become a hot topic in industry and political circles. Perhaps somewhat controversially, Israeli satellite operator Spacecom decided to purchase its next satellite, AMOS-8, from Space Systems Loral, an American satellite manufacturer, rather than the indigenous IAI, which had previously been the manufacturer of choice for satellite missions and has provided satellites for the Ministry of Defence and other businesses both in Israel and internationally.
Read More »Israel’s Spacecom Under Mounting Pressure As It Extends Down Payment Period, AMOS-8 Orbital Slot Claimed by Israeli Government
Israel’s Spacecom, the troubled operator of the AMOS fleet of communications satellites, has postponed its U.S.$112 million contract with Space Systems Loral (SSL) to build the AMOS-8 satellite. Instead, Spacecom has come to an interim agreement with SSL and has a 30 day extension to raise the necessary funds for the initial down payment that will see the contract reinstated and work begun on the satellite.
Read More »Israel’s Space Industry Roiled By Scandal After Spacecom Decision to Buy SSL Satellite
The decision by the board of Israeli satellite communications company Spacecom to buy its AMOS-8 satellite from US satellite manufacturer Space Systems Loral (SSL) over Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has unleashed political controversy in Israel and revealed a potential corruption scandal within Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet.
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