With the Vostochny cosmodrome will run commercial satellites OneWeb – IA Amur.info

The new Russian cosmodrome East, under construction in the Amur region, will be used to fulfill the contract on launches of carrier rockets “Soyuz” spacecraft communications with the British company OneWeb, Tass reported.

«East will be used for start-ups “alliance” with foreign communication satellites under a contract between Roscosmos, Arianspace and OneWeb », – said a spokesman for the Russian Space Agency. According to him, the exact number of commercial launches from the new cosmodrome will be announced later.

On the eve of the Russian Space Agency said that Russia from 2017 to 2019 to provide 21 carrier rocket “Soyuz” spacecraft to the launch of mobile satellite services OneWeb.

«In London Arianspace and OneWeb Company announced the signing of a contract for the launch of the spacecraft system of mobile satellite communications OneWeb with 21 carrier rocket” Soyuz “from 2017 to 2019. For the realization of these plans will require 21 start using rockets “Soyuz”, of which at least 15 will be carried out from Baikonur cosmodrome and Russian, “- said in a statement.

In Roskosmos clarified that in case of successful realization of the project contract provides the option at least five additional launches “Soyuz” after 2020.

«This contract is the largest in the history of the provision of launch services, – stressed the head of the Russian Space Agency, Igor Komarov. – The choice of the launch vehicle” Soyuz “- evidence of the high competitiveness of the Russian rocket and space technology ».

The department also noted that the contract” will provide the next few years a number of domestic full load of rocket-space industry ».

With the help of rockets will launch satellites weighing up to 150 kilograms phased radiating grid Ku-band. The agreement provides for elimination of 672 core group of satellites in near-polar orbit at an altitude of 1.2 thousand kilometers. Spacecraft launch demonstration, scheduled for the end of 2017, will produce at the head office of the corporation Airbus Defence and Space in Toulouse. The rest will be made a joint venture OneWeb and Airbus Defence and Space Florida.

As the head of the Russian space agency, Igor Komarov, the contract is the largest in the history of the provision of launch services. The agency also stressed that the agreement for the next few years will provide a full load of number of domestic space industry.