Intelsat SA has announced that an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton vehicle has successfully launched the Intelsat 23 satellite from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan
The satellite will have an anticipated service life of more than 18 years and will, according to Intersat, provide enhanced capacity for enterprise, oil and gas, and data networking applications.
“The Intelsat 23 satellite separated from the rocket’s upper stage 9 hours and 30 minutes after launch, at 2:07 pm EDT, and signal acquisition has been confirmed,” the company revealed in a statement.
Intelsat 23 will replace Intelsat 707 at 307°E and provide C-band services to customers in the Americas, Europe and Africa, and Ku-band coverage for Latin America, the satellite service provider informed.
Intelsat chief executive officer David McGlade said, “Intelsat 23 will refresh satellite capacity across four continents, offering critical services to the world’s leading communications providers.
“This launch continues our current fleet replacement and expansion campaign, which is scheduled for completion in early 2013.”
ILS President Frank McKenna said, “It is an honour to celebrate our landmark 75th commercial launch with Intelsat with the successful launch of the Intelsat 23 satellite.
“The performance of the ILS Proton vehicle for this near geostationary orbit mission will provide expanded lifetime for the Intelsat 23 satellite.”
Built by Orbital Sciences Corporation, Intelsat 23 is the final scheduled launch for Intelsat in 2012. Intelsat 27 is scheduled for launch in Q1 2013. The launch will mark the completion of Intelsat's global broadband mobility platform.
