India’s most advanced communications satellite was successfully launched into space thanks to Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket which blasted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on Tuesday.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched its satellite on the Falcon 9 rocket, which completed its 396th flight. The satellite began a 34-minute journey into space, aiming to provide broadband services to remote areas. This will also enable internet availability in aircraft in the Indian region.

Whenever international flights enter Indian airspace, they have to turn off the internet because India does not allow this service. But recently, India changed its rules to allow in-flight internet access over India.

Takeoff of GSAT-N2! pic.twitter.com/4JqOrQINzE

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ISRO’s Mark-3 launch vehicle can place 4,000 kg into a geostationary transfer orbit. However, since GSAT-N2 weighs 4,700 kg, the space agency uses SpaceX’s launch vehicle. This is ISRO’s first commercial launch using SpaceX. GSAT-N2 (GSAT-20) is a high-speed Ka-band communications satellite of NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), under the Ministry of Space and commercial arm of ISRO. The satellite features multiple spot beams and aims to support a large subscriber base with small user terminals.

“Successful launch,” said Radhakrishnan Durairaj, chairman and managing director of New Space India Limited, the commercial arm of ISRO. Durairaj, who monitored the flight from Cape Canaveral, told NDTV: “GSAT 20 got a very precise orbit.”

According to India Today, with Arianespace currently lacking operational rockets and geopolitical tensions limiting Russia and China’s options, SpaceX has emerged as the most viable choice for India.

ISRO had earlier said: “GSAT-N2 has a design life of 14 years… and is equipped with 32 user beams, including 8 narrow beams over the North East region and 24 wide beams over the rest of the India. These 32 beams will be supported by central stations located in mainland India. The Ka-Band HTS communications payload provides approximately 48 Gbps throughput.”