KT SAT picks Ariane 6 to launch KOREASAT 9 in 2028
Arianespace · KT SAT · AscendArc
KT SAT booked an Ariane 6 rideshare slot for its AscendArc-built KOREASAT 9 satellite, launching in the second half of 2028.
what happened
Arianespace said Sept. 10 it will launch KT SAT's KOREASAT 9 satellite, built by U.S. manufacturer AscendArc, on an Ariane 6 rideshare mission to geostationary transfer orbit in the second half of 2028, using its new Multiple Launch System from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. KOREASAT 9 will deliver "hundreds of Gbps of Ka-band capacity" across the Asia-Pacific region, per Arianespace, and marks AscendArc's first-ever launch.
why it matters
The booking gives Ariane 6 a foothold in the GEO high-throughput satellite market via a rideshare slot rather than a dedicated launch, and gives AscendArc, a satellite manufacturer founded in 2023, its debut flight as it tries to establish a lower-cost GEO satellite line.
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Arianespace, KT SAT, AscendArc
- Category
- launch
- Impact
- noise
- SNR
- 4 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-09-10
- Published
- 2026-09-12 05:33 UTC