Express-A4 (Express-A1R, Ekspress-A4)

Express-A4 (Express-A1R, Ekspress-A4) was a Russian geostationary communications satellite operated by RSCC (Russian Satellite Communications Company). It was launched on 29 October 2002 aboard a Proton-K / DM-2M rocket, operated by ILS, from Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Built on the NPO PM Express-A platform, Express-A1R was designed to provide television broadcasting, radio, data transmission, and telephony services across Russia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Asia. The satellite carried Ku-band transponders, supporting both civil and commercial communications.

Express-A1R was positioned in geostationary orbit and had a design lifetime of about 12 years. It formed part of Russia’s early-2000s effort to modernize and expand its national satellite communications infrastructure, serving as a bridge between the older Gorizont satellites and later Express-AM generations.