Arianespace today successfully orbited the
Atlantic BirdT 2 spacecraft for Eutelsat, the international
telecommunications operator.

Atlantic BirdT 2 is the 15th satellite launched by Arianespace for
Eutelsat – one of the world’s leading providers of communications solutions.
Today’s mission was a key element in Eutelsat’s international expansion
strategy, and the flight underscores this operator’s confidence in
Arianespace.

The Arianespace collaboration with Eutelsat dates back to 1983. Nearly 70
percent of all Eutelsat satellites now in operation were orbited by Ariane
launchers.

Two more Eutelsat satellites currently are booked for future launches by
Arianespace.

Following Flight 144, Arianespace now has a backlog of 50 payloads to be
launched: 41 satellites and nine ATV missions for the International Space
Station.

Arianespace’s next mission

The next Arianespace launch is scheduled for November 27. An Ariane 44LP
will orbit DirecTV-4S, a spacecraft built by Boeing Satellite Systems for
the U.S. direct broadcast company, DirecTV.

Ariane 5 flight resumption

The action plan designed to return Ariane 5 to service is moving ahead. All
recommendations issued by the inquiry board are being applied methodically
and rigorously. Planned modifications are now underway on the ground-based
test stand used to validate flight conditions during static firings of the
Ariane 5 upper stage engine. As a result, the resumption of Ariane 5 flights
is expected in January 2002.

Flight 144 at a glance: the 64th successful Ariane 4 launch in a row
Flight 144 was carried out by an Ariane 44P, the launcher version of the
Ariane 4 family equipped with four solid-propellant strap-on boosters.
Liftoff from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana was on September
25, 2001 at 8:21 p.m. local time (23H21 GMT; 7:21 p.m. in Washington, D.C.,
and on September 26 at 01:21 a.m. in Paris).

Provisional parameters at third stage injection were:

Perigee: 299.6 km. for a target of 299.8 km. (±3 km.)

Apogee: 35,900 km. for a target of 35,931 km. (±150 km.)

Inclination: 7.00 degrees for a target of 7.00 degrees (±0.06*)

The Atlantic BirdT 2 satellite payload

Built by Alcatel Space in Cannes, southern France, the Atlantic BirdT 2
satellite will be positioned at 8 degrees West. It will provide a wide range
of high-speed communications services between North America, South America,
Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

Atlantic BirdT 2 weighed 3,150 kg. at liftoff, and is equipped with 26
Ku-band transponders (each rated at 107 W). It has a design life of 15
years.