Gokturk 1 – Spaceflight Now

Turkey’s military gets a new eye in the sky with successful Vega launch

December 5, 2016 Stephen Clark

A European-built, Turkish-owned spy satellite rocketed into orbit Monday aboard a Vega booster launched from French Guiana, part of a $300 million project to feed improved surveillance imagery to the Turkish military and advance the country’s aerospace manufacturing base.

Live coverage: Turkish reconnaissance launches on Vega rocket

December 5, 2016 Stephen Clark

A Vega rocket lifted off from a tropical launch pad in French Guiana at 1351 GMT (8:51 a.m. EST) Monday with Gokturk 1, a sharp-eyed reconnaissance satellite built in France and owned by the Turkish armed forces.

Launch timeline for Vega’s liftoff with Gokturk 1

December 4, 2016 Stephen Clark

Turkey’s most advanced Earth observation satellite will ride a four-stage Vega rocket into polar orbit nearly 435 miles above Earth to begin collecting high-resolution images for Turkish military and security authorities.

Turkish military satellite joined with Vega launcher

November 28, 2016 Stephen Clark

A European-built reconnaissance satellite for the Turkish armed forces has been fastened to the top of its Vega launcher for liftoff from French Guiana next week.

Record pace of Ariane 5 flights planned for 2016

January 11, 2016 Stephen Clark

Arianespace plans 11 launches from French Guiana this year, including eight flights by the heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket with up to a dozen large telecommunications satellites and four spacecraft for Europe’s Galileo navigation system.

Q&A with Stéphane Israël, chairman and CEO of Arianespace

December 16, 2015 Stephen Clark

Arianespace chief executive Stéphane Israël discussed his company’s outlook with Spaceflight Now, touching on the light-class Vega rocket’s business prospects, the launch manifest in 2016, Arianespace’s view of innovation in the launch market, and his plans to compete in the next decade.