Soyuz 2.1b/Fregat - 3 Gonets-M blok №18, Skif-D - Vostochny - 22 Oct 22 19:57UTC

[Stan Black]

Payload: Gonets-M blok № 18
Rocket: Soyuz-2-1b 372РН17

State Centre for Space Research and Production, in the name of M.V. Khrunichev
Государственный космический научно-производственный центр имени М.В. Хруничева

Angara-1.2

Изготовление и поставка ракеты-носителя «Ангара-1.2» для запуска космических аппаратов «Гонец-М» № 33, № 34, № 35

1 983 436 500 Russian ruble
Planned order placement: 2019
[source]

Fairing, type 14С733

Изготовление и поставка головного обтекателя 14С733 для запуска космических аппаратов «Гонец-М» № 33, № 34, № 35

105 000 000 Russian ruble
Planned order placement: 2020
[source]

Joint Stock Company «Information Satellite Systems» in the name of Academician M.F. Reshetnyova
Открытое акционерное общество «Информационные спутниковые системы» имени академика М.Ф. Решетнёва

Blok № 18 with Gonets-M № 33, № 34 and № 35, and attachment mechanism 14С137

Изготовление и поставка на космодром «Плесецк» блока 372АС71.0000-0 в составе трех космических аппаратов «Гонец-М» (изделие 372АС11) № 33, № 34, № 35, устройства отделения (14С137.0000-0)

1 155 887 800 Russian ruble
Contract date: 26th July 2017
Contract number: 307-С558/17/139
Contract period: 30th September 2021
[source]

[zubenelgenubi]

Update from the thread Plan of Russian Space Launches (part 2):

Launch scheduled for Q4 2021.

[Stan Black]

Contract for the Angara cancelled?
http://www.zakupki.gov.ru/epz/contract/contractCard/common-info.html?reestrNumber=4770238802719000075

[russianhalo117]

Contract for the Angara cancelled?
http://www.zakupki.gov.ru/epz/contract/contractCard/common-info.html?reestrNumber=4770238802719000075

Rocket might be reassigned per Anatoly Zak paywall info plus continued delays. Could have gone back to Soyuz-2.

[GWR64]

officially: https://www.roscosmos.ru/27712/

Google translate:

The launch of the Gonets satellites will take place on the Soyuz-2 rocket in 2021.

The launch of the Gonets spacecraft, scheduled for 2021, will be carried out on the Soyuz-2 launch vehicle. Previously, their launch into near-Earth orbit was planned using the Angara rocket. Soyuz-2 launch vehicles are fully adapted to the “Messenger” spacecraft.

In accordance with the production plans of the State Corporation "Roskosmos" at the Production Association "Flight" (Omsk) is deployed and in 2023 the serial production of rockets of the Angara family will be launched. Currently, preparations are underway to resume flight tests of this promising missile.

The management of Roscosmos considers launching the production of universal Angara rocket modules at the Omsk production site a priority for the corporation. In 2024, the heavy Angara should completely replace Proton-M launch vehicles.

In this regard, on November 5, 2019, Dmitry Rogozin plans to visit the Vostochny Cosmodrome with an inspection trip, where the construction of the Angara launch vehicle launch complex has been launched as part of the second stage. On November 6 and 7, a working visit of the Director General of Roscosmos to Omsk will take place to inspect the preparations for the production of Angara missiles.

IMO, the situation of Angara 1.2 is hopeless. It is only kept alive politically.

[russianhalo117]

officially: https://www.roscosmos.ru/27712/

Google translate:

The launch of the Gonets satellites will take place on the Soyuz-2 rocket in 2021.

The launch of the Gonets spacecraft, scheduled for 2021, will be carried out on the Soyuz-2 launch vehicle. Previously, their launch into near-Earth orbit was planned using the Angara rocket. Soyuz-2 launch vehicles are fully adapted to the “Messenger” spacecraft.

In accordance with the production plans of the State Corporation "Roskosmos" at the Production Association "Flight" (Omsk) is deployed and in 2023 the serial production of rockets of the Angara family will be launched. Currently, preparations are underway to resume flight tests of this promising missile.

The management of Roscosmos considers launching the production of universal Angara rocket modules at the Omsk production site a priority for the corporation. In 2024, the heavy Angara should completely replace Proton-M launch vehicles.

In this regard, on November 5, 2019, Dmitry Rogozin plans to visit the Vostochny Cosmodrome with an inspection trip, where the construction of the Angara launch vehicle launch complex has been launched as part of the second stage. On November 6 and 7, a working visit of the Director General of Roscosmos to Omsk will take place to inspect the preparations for the production of Angara missiles.

IMO, the situation of Angara 1.2 is hopeless. It is only kept alive politically.

Actually the whole family has much bigger domestic and foreign issues. Geopolitics has dramatically slowed production on top of domestic tooling issues: http://russianspaceweb.com/protected/angara-2019.html

[Stan Black]

Soyuz for Vostochny
https://www.zakupki.gov.ru/epz/order/notice/ok504/view/documents.html?regNumber=0995000000219000167

[eeergo]

https://twitter.com/roscosmos/status/1457640920321560576

Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems Company (ISS, part of Roscosmos) has completed building of three Gonets-M spacecraft. They have passed a full cycle of ground tests.
 ISS Reshetnev specialists have checked the correctness of their installation on the separation unit, which will be used to dock the three spacecraft to the launch vehicles. The spacecraft are ready to be sent to the Baikonur Cosmodrome and are at the manufacturer's custody. Their launch is planned for 2022.
 
 These spacecraft were built to replenish the Gonets-D1M multifunction personal satellite communications system orbital constellation. The system provides hard-to-reach territories with communications, organize data transmission networks for various agencies, industrial, ecological and scientific monitoring.

I've always found the Gonets' design quite enticing. Loving how the "curtains" on the white-brown antennas look.

[Rondaz]

Three Gonets-M satellites await launch

11/08/2021 09:27

Company "Information Satellite Systems" named after academician M.F. Reshetnev "(ISS, part of the State Corporation" Roscosmos ") completed the creation of three spacecraft" Gonets-M ". They have passed a full cycle of ground tests.

ISS specialists checked the correctness of their installation on the separation device, with the help of which the three spacecraft will dock with the launch vehicle. Currently, the spacecraft, ready to be sent to the cosmodrome, have been placed for safekeeping at the manufacturer. Their launch is scheduled for 2022.

These spacecraft are designed to replenish the orbital constellation of the Gonets-D1M Multifunctional Personal Satellite Communication System. Its services are in demand for providing communication in hard-to-reach areas, organizing data transmission networks in the interests of various departments, industrial, environmental and scientific monitoring.

https://www.roscosmos.ru/33272/

[Alter Sachse]

Maybe the note from twitter is not correct

In the NK-forum it says:
декабрь - три Гонца-М (№33,34,35) [блок №18], микроспутники - Союз-2-1Б/Фрегат - Восточный 1С (или IV кв-л)

December - three Gonets-M (#33,34,35) [block #18], microsatellites - Soyuz-2-1B/Fregat - Vostochny 1C (or Q4)

[Alter Sachse]

https://twitter.com/roscosmos/status/1457640920321560576

Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems Company has completed building of three #GonetsM spacecraft. They have passed a full cycle of ground tests.



I don't read anything about Baikonur.

[eeergo]

Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems Company has completed building of three #GonetsM spacecraft. They have passed a full cycle of ground tests.

I don't read anything about Baikonur.

See the Roscosmos news article I copied in the OP: The spacecraft are ready to be sent to the Baikonur Cosmodrome and are at the manufacturer's custody. Their launch is planned for 2022.

It is true however the Russian original only talks about a "cosmodrome".

[Alter Sachse]

Baikonur is indeed written there.
I think it is a translation/transmission error.

[Stan Black]

As of September 2021 it was still Vostochny.

Услуги по запуску космических аппаратов «Гонец-М» № 33, № 34, № 35

[source]

[zubenelgenubi]

https://twitter.com/nicolas_pillet/status/1531612764917080066

According to the NK forum, we would have the following schedule:
 - Iranian satellite ("Project 505") on 09/08 from Baikonur
 - Goniets and Skif on 29/09 from Vostotchnyi
 - Kondor-FKA on 08/12 from Vostochnyi
 - Meteor-M n°2-3 on 29/12 from Vostotchnyi

[zubenelgenubi]

Re: launch of Skif-D and three Gonets-M satellites:

Roskosmos will launch the first satellite of the Sfera group into orbit in October.

Roskosmos: the first satellite of the Sphere group will be put into orbit at the end of October 2022.

17:59 08/01/2022

MOSCOW, August 1 - RIA Novosti. The first apparatus of the Sphere multi-satellite constellation, the experimental Skif-D, will be launched into orbit from the Vostochny Cosmodrome at the end of October 2022, Roscosmos reported on Monday.

"Now the design of the satellite is ready and transferred to the assembly shop. At the end of September, Skif-D will be transported to Vostochny to prepare for launch. According to the plan, the satellite will be sent into orbit along with the Gontsov-M troika at the end of October," the satellite says. in the message of the state corporation in the Telegram channel.
<snip>
https://ria.ru/20220801/sputnik-1806498001.html

[Rondaz]

The Fregat upper stage was delivered to the Vostochny Cosmodrome to launch the first satellite of the Sphere project

02.08.202212:00

The Fregat upper stage has arrived at the Vostochny cosmodrome, designed to launch three Gonets-M communication spacecraft and the Skif-D demonstration satellite for broadband Internet access, the first device under the Sfera federal project.

The upper stage was delivered by air transport to the city of Blagoveshchensk and transported by road to the territory of the cosmodrome. Transportation from the capital of the Amur Region to the technical complex of the cosmodrome took about six hours, while for safety the speed did not exceed 60 km/h.

In the assembly and test building of spacecraft, operations have already begun to transfer the Frigate and transfer it to storage mode.

Before the launch campaign, a joint calculation of specialists from the branch of TsENKI JSC - the Vostochny Space Center and JSC NPO named after S.A. Lavochkin (part of the Roscosmos State Corporation) will conduct a full cycle of electrical and pneumovacuum tests with it.

Upper stage "Fregat" manufactured by JSC "NPO named after S.A. Lavochkin is used as part of medium-class launch vehicles and ensures the effective implementation of all tasks for launching one or more spacecraft into working orbits or trajectories departing from the Earth. The entire launch process is carried out autonomously, without interference from the Earth. More than 100 successful launches have already been carried out with the help of the Fregat upper stage, more than 800 spacecraft have been put into calculated orbits.

https://www.roscosmos.ru/38044/

[Rondaz]

Assembly and testing of the first satellite of the Sphere project began

08/01/2022 16:35

At the enterprise "Information satellite systems" named after academician M.F. Reshetnev” (part of the State Corporation “Roscosmos”) , the stage of assembly and testing of the demonstration spacecraft for broadband Internet access “Skif-D” has started.

It will be the first satellite launched as part of the Sphere program, one of the key projects of Roscosmos, which is designed to solve the problem of the digital divide and is aimed at developing space information technologies. For this program, ISS performs work on the manufacture of spacecraft within the framework of the Skif and Marathon projects.

Work on the Skif-D satellite started at the enterprise in the second half of 2020. Certain difficulties arose after the imposition of sanctions by the West this spring, when foreign partners refused to supply the necessary payload equipment and satellite platform. All foreign equipment was promptly replaced with domestic counterparts.

Now the design of the satellite is ready and transferred to the assembly shop. During the time left before the departure of Skif-D to the Vostochny Cosmodrome, ISS specialists will have to complete the full scope of work on assembling and testing the spacecraft. At the end of September, Skif-D is transported to Vostochny to prepare for launch. It is planned that the satellite will be sent into orbit along with the Gontsov-M trio at the end of October.

The mass of Skif-D is no more than 200 kg, power consumption is about 250 watts. It will be launched into a medium circular orbit at an altitude of 8070 km. The term of its active existence is three years. The spacecraft will be part of the Skif-D experimental space system. It is designed to test new technical solutions for providing high-speed Internet access services in Russia, including in the regions of the Far North and the Arctic, as well as to protect the orbital-frequency resource.

https://www.roscosmos.ru/38040/

[Rondaz]

First launch of Gonets satellite from Vostochny space center due Oct. 22 — source.

The exact launch date will depend on readiness of Skif-D.

4 AUG, 20:37

MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. The first launch of three Gonets satellites from the Vostochny space center in Russia’s Far East is scheduled for late October, a rocket and space industry source has told TASS.

"The launch of Gonets satellites from Vostochny may take place on October 22," the source said.

The exact launch date will depend on readiness of Skif-D, the first spacecraft of the Sfera satellite constellation currently being created by the Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems Company (part of Russia’s State Space Corporation Roscosmos).

Earlier, the Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems Company announced it had started to manufacture the Skif-D communications satellite, due to be launched in October 2022. The work began in the second half of 2020, but designers had to face certain difficulties, caused by Western sanctions and partners’ refusal to supply the necessary equipment. However, all foreign elements were promptly replaced with their domestically produced counterparts.

Skif satellites have been designed to ensure broadband internet access and are being developed under the Sfera program, announced in 2018. The Sfera project will also include remote sensing satellites. Overall, the orbital constellation will comprise about 380 spacecraft. Sfera will also help Russia to organize widespread traffic of unmanned vehicles, both aerial and ground ones.

https://tass.com/science/1489697

[zubenelgenubi]

This launch should be the return to operations of the Vostochny Soyuz launch complex, after its upgrades.

First launch of Gonets satellite from Vostochny space center due Oct. 22 — source.

The exact launch date will depend on readiness of Skif-D.

4 AUG, 20:37

MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. The first launch of three Gonets satellites from the Vostochny space center in Russia’s Far East is scheduled for late October, a rocket and space industry source has told TASS.

"The launch of Gonets satellites from Vostochny may take place on October 22," the source said.

https://tass.com/science/1489697