SOFIA (Bulgaria), June 16 (SeeNews) – Bulgarian telecommunications company Bulsatcom said on Friday that the launch of its geostationary communications satellite BulgariaSat-1 - the country's first - is now planned for June 19.
"SpaceX completed a few hours ago the static fire test of Falcon 9, targeting June 19th launch of BulgariaSat-1," Bulsatcom said in a statement.
Last week, Bulsatcom said June 17 was targeted as a launch date, noting that the launch window will remain open for the next few days in case of change in the meteorological conditions.
BulgariaSat-1 will be taken into space from Cape Canaveral aboard a space-proven Falcon 9 rocket provided by SpaceX. Falcon 9 will launch the Bulgarian satellite from LC-39A pad, home of the historic Apollo and Space Shuttle programs, Bulsatcom said.
BulgariaSat-1 will provide high quality Direct-to-Home television and communications services the Balkans, other regions of Europe and North Africa. The satellite could also be used in case of natural disasters such as earthquakes, storms and floods when land-based networks are not operational, Bulsatcom said.