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Demand for satellite communication system Gonets rises and will continue to grow — CEO

According to Pavel Cherenkov, this is influenced by the departure of several foreign satellite operators

VOSTOCHNY COSMODROME, October 23. /TASS/. Satellite system Gonets expects to see growth in demand for services in the coming years, General Director of JSC Satellite System Gonets Pavel Cherenkov told reporters.

"This year we already feel a significant increase in traffic in our system. We expect even greater growth in the coming years," Cherenkov said.

According to him, this is influenced by the departure of several foreign satellite operators. Cherenkov also noted that the vehicles launched from the Vostochny cosmodrome on Saturday would be integrated into the system in about a month.

Soyuz-2.1b launch vehicle carrying three Gonets-M satellites and a Skif-D module, was launched under the Sfera program from the Vostochny Cosmodrome at 22:57 Moscow time on Saturday.

It is the first rocket launch from Vostochny in 2022. The Gonets-M satellites were launched from that spaceport for the first time. Skif-D is also the first module to be launched into space under the Sfera program.

Russian President Vladimir Putin talked about the Sfera program during his annual Q&A session on June 7, 2018. The program includes the launch of communications and Earth remote sensing satellites. Former Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Rogozin said at the time that the Sfera program would include five satellite constellations providing telecom services, and another five designed for monitoring.

Gonets is Russia’s only low-orbit satellite communications system designed for the global exchange of various types of information with mobile and stationary facilities, as well as organizing re-broadcasting channels for various purposes.

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