THAICOM 8 orbit

[dino1984]

Following Elon Musk tweet Thaicom8 was separated to apogee of 91,000 km:

For what reason it goes so high if its destination is GEO?

[andrewas]

The higher you go, the less it costs to change planes, So you can save fuel by going above GEO, even through it costs more dV to circularize.

 

 

[B787_300]

So what Thaicom 8 was deployed in is called a Super Synchronous Geostationary Transfer orbit. This orbit can help lower fuel usage to reach operational readiness because it is easier to do the 25 deg (roughly) to 0 deg plane change further out.  also the circularization burn takes slightly less fuel and you can phase around the planet faster in the Super Sync orbit.