"This first Indonesian satellite aims to distribute internet access evenly, particularly for purposes of education, medical, public services, people, and military and the police force," the minister noted in a press statement here on Monday.
SATRIA-1 will cover the entire Indonesian territory, including remote areas, he remarked.
The minister also clarified that the SATRIA-1 project is not hindered by the 4G base transceiver station corruption case currently being handled by the court.
"No relation to the BTS case, as this is its own separate project for public services," Mahfud explained.
SATRIA-1 was successfully launched into the sky at 6:21 p.m. local time from the Cape Canaveral Space Lauch Complex 40 (SLC 40), Florida, the United States.
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After the launch, the satellite will be positioned at 146 degrees East Longitude.
Once placed there, PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN) and Thales Alenia Space (TAS) will conduct In-Orbit Testing to ensure that the satellite is functioning normally after the launch. It is estimated that the process will take up three weeks.
Thereafter, PSN will conduct an In-Orbit Acceptance Review (IOAR) in the first week of December 2023.
Thus, people are expected to gain access to SATRIA-1's internet facility gradually from January 2024.
According to the newest study conducted by the Telecommunications and Information Accessibility Agency at the Acting Communication and Informatics Ministry (BAKTI Kominfo) in 2023, SATRIA-1, with a capacity of 150 Gbps, will provide internet access for 50 thousand public facilities.
The internet speed at those spots is projected to reach four Mbps, with the figure having increased from the initial speed estimation of one Mbps made in 2018 when SATRIA-1 was first initiated.
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Translator: Adimas Raditya FP, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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