Launch Set for Boeing-Built Thuraya-2 Mobile Communications Satellite
The Boeing-built Thuraya-2 mobile communications satellite undergoes final preparations at Boeing Satellite Systems' in El Segundo, Calif. The Boeing GEO-Mobile satellite was built for Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company of United Arab Emirates to support Thuraya's mobile data and voice services business. The satellite features a unique mesh transmit-receive reflector that is visible in its stowed, wrapped configuration in the upper center of the spacecraft. This antenna will expand to 12.25 meters (40 feet) by 16 meters (52 feet) in orbit and enable the satellite handle nearly 14,000 simultaneous phone calls.