On November 3, SpaceX successfully launched the Eutelsat HOTBIRD 13G mission to a geosynchronous transfer orbit using a Falcon 9 rocket. This was the seventh launch and landing of this booster, which previously supported the launch of CRS-22, Crew-3, Turksat 5B, Crew-4, CRS-25, and one Starlink mission.
EUTELSAT HOTBIRD 13G is the second of two satellites built by manufacturer Airbus Defence and Space to be placed at Eutelsat’s flagship 13-degree East neighbourhood position, replacing three older satellites. It is also based on the Eurostar Neo telecommunications satellite platform, developed under an ESA Partnership Project with Airbus designed to foster innovation and competitiveness in the European space industry.
Once into orbit and positioned, the satellite EUTELSAT HOTBIRD 13G will, with its twin EUTELSAT HOTBIRD 13F launched on October 15th, reinforce and enhance the broadcast of more than a thousand television channels into homes across Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East.
In February 2021, Eutelsat was entrusted once again by the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) to host the EGNOS GEO-4 payload, which is on board EUTELSAT HOTBIRD 13G. Eutelsat already operates the EGNOS GEO-3 payload on its EUTELSAT 5 West B satellite.
EGNOS is the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service that acts as an augmentation service to global positioning systems, to improve the reliability of positioning information.
