Ekspress-AM44

Ekspress-AM44 (Экспресс-АМ44, meaning Express-AM44) is a Russian domestic communications satellite. It belongs to the Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) based in Moscow, Russia. To provide of communications services (digital television, telephony, videoconferencing, data transmission, the Internet access, presidential and governmental mobile communications) and to deploy satellite networks by applying Very-small-aperture terminal (VSAT) technology to Russia.

Satellite description
The satellite has a total of 17 transponders, was 10 C-band, 6 Ku-band and 1 L-band transponders. The Ekspress-AM44 Russian domestic communications satellite, built by Information Satellite Systems Reshetnev (NPO PM) for Kosmicheskaya Svyaz. The communications payload was built by the French company Thales Alenia Space.

Launch
Ekspress-AM44 was launched by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, using a Proton-M / Briz-M launch vehicle. The launch took place at 00:03:00 UTC on 11 February 2009, from Site 200/39 at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. Successfully deployed into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), Ekspress-AM44 raised itself into an operational geostationary orbit using its apogee motor.

Mission
Express-AM44 was launched into orbit on 11 February 2009. The commercial operation of the satellite started in April 2009. The Ekspress-103 satellite entered in service at orbital position 11° West on 25 March 2021, where it replaced Ekspress-AM44.