Eutelsat 36D at 7° East

Eutelsat 36D at 7° East is operated by satellite operator Eutelsat Group from France. The spacecraft is based on the all-electric Airbus Eurostar Neo platform and equipped with 70 Ku-band transponders to provide TV and government connectivity services from 36 degrees East. The satellite has a steerable antenna and is set to replace Eutelsat’s aging Eutelsat 36B satellite.

The satellite is co-located with Russian satellite operator RSCC’s Ekspress-AMU1, also known as Eutelsat 36C. Ekspress-AMU1 is one of the satellites Eutelsat leases capacity from to have been caught up in sanctions amid Russia’s war in Ukraine. 

On March 30^th, 2024 Eutelsat 36D was launched on a Falcon 9 rocket operated by SpaceX from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and placed the satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit 34 minutes later. It will take Eutelsat around half a year to move the satellite to a geostationary orbit slot over Africa and Eurasia.