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Telkom to deorbit troubled satellite
State-owned telecommunications firm PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (PT Telkom) will deorbit Telkom 1 satellite following a shutdown since Friday.
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Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara (JP/Anton Hermansyah )
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tate-owned telecommunications firm PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (PT Telkom) will deorbit Telkom 1 satellite following a shutdown since Friday, which has affected the operation of its customers, including the banking sector, according to Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara.
The minister said he spoke to Telkom president director Alex J. Sinaga on Saturday about the plan to deorbit the satellite.
“We have to secure a slot because the satellite was planned to be deorbited in 2018. So, there is a one-year gap,” Rudiantara said as reported by kontan.co.id on Wednesday, adding that Telkom and Lockheed Martin were currently studying the cause of the satellite shutdown.
Read also: Overage Telkom 1 shuts down, disrupts banking servicesThe Telkom satellite had actually passed its 15-year lifespan when it suddenly went offline. Launched on Aug. 4, 1999, it is currently 18 years old.
According to PT Telkom, its last check on the satellite indicated that it could have been operational until 2019.
Rudiantara predicted that the satellite shutdown was caused by a malfunction of its battery, while the remaining fuel would be only enough to deorbit it.
He hoped the migration of services from Telkom 1 to other satellites — including to Telkom 2 and Telkom 3S — will go smoothly so that the company could serve its customers as normal.
He urged Telkom’s customers to remain calm, as the migration process was taking place.
“The satellite service is a high-risk business,” he added. (bbn)
