Ariane 5 build-up is completed for Arianespace’s upcoming flight with EUTELSAT 25B/Es’hail 1 and GSAT-7

The heavy-lift Ariane 5 for Arianespace’s August 29 mission is now complete at the Spaceport in French Guiana following integration of its second passenger – the EUTELSAT 25B/Es’hail 1 satellite.

Encapsulated in an ogive-shaped payload fairing, EUTELSAT 25B/Es’hail 1 and the SYLDA dispenser system on which it is installed were lowered over GSAT-7 – which was mated with the Ariane 5 earlier this month – to finish launcher build-up at the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building.

With both satellites now installed, Ariane 5 is ready for the final pre-flight preparations – including the launch readiness review on August 27, followed by its rollout to the launch zone the next day, and the subsequent countdown to a 50-minute launch window that opens at 5:30 p.m. local time in French Guiana on August 29.

Riding in the upper position of the payload “stack,” EUTELSAT 25B/Es’hail 1 will be deployed first, at approximately 27 minutes after liftoff.

Once in orbit, the spacecraft will be used by European telecommunications operator Eutelsat Communications and Qatar’s Es’hailSat Satellite Company to deliver television broadcasting, telecommunications and government services in the Ku-band range, while its Ka-band capability will open business opportunities for both operators. This high-power, multi-mission relay platform was built by Space Systems/Loral (SSL) and will be positioned at 25.5 deg. East, with a design life of 15 years or more.

Following the release of EUTELSAT 25B/Es’hail 1, GSAT-7 – the mission’s lower passenger – will be deployed at 34 minutes after liftoff, completing the delivery of this Ariane 5’s payloads into geostationary transfer orbit.

The Indian satellite, developed by the nation’s Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) space agency, will provide relay capacity in UHF, S-band, C-band and Ku-band from an orbital position of 74 deg. East during its design life of seven years.

Designated Ariane Flight VA215 in the company’s launcher family numbering system, this mission represents the 215th flight of an Ariane-series vehicle, as well as the fourth Ariane 5 liftoff in 2013.