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American aerospace company Space X will launch two new Turkish satellites, Turkey's Transport, Maritime and Communications Minister Ahmet Arslan said Thursday.
The satellites, Turksat 5A and Turksat 5B will be launched by the Falcon 9 rocket -- a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites, Arslan said.
Turkey signed a deal with Airbus Defence and Space (Airbus DS) -- of which Space X is a sub-supplier -- for the production of the two satellites, during the ongoing Global SatShow in Istanbul.
Airbus had made the best bid to produce the satellites in October.
The chief executive officer of American aerospace company SpaceX arrived in Turkey on Wednesday to discuss the launch of two new Turkish satellites, the presidential spokesman said.“Elon Musk came to Turkey to discuss the launch of Turksat 5A and 5B satellites,” Ibrahim Kalın told Anadolu Agency.He was received by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the presidential complex in the capital Ankara.The hour-long closed-door meeting was also attended by the Turkish Technology Minister Faruk Ozlu and the Turkish Transport Minister Ahmet Arslan.Galeri: Erdoğan receives SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in AnkaraOn Thursday, discussions are expected over a deal with Turkey’s chosen satellite-manufacturing Airbus Defence and Space firm, of which SpaceX is a sub-supplier, Kalın added.Turkey hopes to send Turksat 5A into space by 2020 and Turksat 5B by 2021.Another satellite Turksat 6A will also start operations in the coming years, pushing the number of Turkey’s active communications satellites to six, he said.Kalın added that the long-waited project for the country's first domestically produced car announced by Erdoğan, last week, was discussed with Musk, who also heads American automaker Tesla.Erdoğan receives SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in Ankara“Elon Musk's company is actually a major sustainable energy company. So, we talked about topics such as new generation batteries, solar energy, and wind energy,” he said.“We also discussed issues such as how to overcome traffic problems in metropolitan areas, digging tunnels, having underground traffic”, Kalın added.Five automotive supplier firms -- Anadolu Group, BMC, Kiraca Holding, Turkcell, and Zorlu Holding -- will jointly manufacture Turkey's first car, Erdoğan said, adding that he expects the car’s prototype will be ready in 2019, with sales to follow in 2021.Turkey made its first efforts to produce its own car, called Devrim (Revolution), in 1961, but it never made it past the prototype stage.Turkish communications satellite fleet to grow to 6Erdoğan 'to buy Turkey's first domestically-produced car'Turkey launches joint venture for first domestically-produced car
Erdoğan, SpaceX CEO discuss new Turkish satellites
Turkey aims to launch Turksat 5A by 2020 and Turksat 5B by 2021.
The satellites will play a vital role in Turkey's development in the telecommunication sector, Arslan said, adding that they are being produced by Turkish engineers and domestic resources.
Nicolas Chamussy, executive vice president of Airbus, said that the Turkish aerospace industry will benefit from this production.
Turksat 5B will be built in facilities in Ankara and Turkish institutions such as defense company Aselsan will contribute to the project, Chamussy said.
Elon Musk, chief executive officer of Space X, arrived in Ankara on Wednesday to meet President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The two discussed the launch of the two new satellites, said Ibrahim Kalın, the presidential spokesman.