SpaceX Launches Turksat 5A mission

Credit: SpaceX

On Saturday, December 18 at 10:58pm ET, SpaceX launched the Turksat 5B satellite atop a Falcon 9 rocket from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. There was a one hour launch window. The 45th Weather Squadron of Space Launch Delta 45 at Patrick Space Force Base predicted an 80% chance of favorable weather. This was the 134th Falcon 9 launch, 142nd SpaceX mission, and the 134th orbital launch attempt of 2021. The first stage previously flew on CRS-22 and Crew-3. It landed on the "A Shortfall of Gravitas" droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. Turksat 5B is a communications satellite built by Airbus Defense and Space. It was the second Turksat satellite launched by SpaceX after Turksat 5A in January 2021. Turksat 6A will be launched by Falcon 9 in January 2022. This was the 10th Turksat satellite launched overall. This launch was SpaceX's second launch in 24 hours after Starlink 4-4 that launched Saturday morning. SpaceX will have one more launch in 2021, CRS-24 on December 21.