International Launch Services (ILS) of the
United States will launch the Amazonas satellite for HISPASAT of Spain on a
Proton/Breeze M vehicle next year under a contract announced today. This is
the third launch pairing for HISPASAT and ILS, who saw the successful
flights of HISPASAT 1C in 2000 and HISPASAT 1D in 2002 on Atlas IIAS
vehicles from Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The Amazonas launch, planned for mid-2004, is scheduled to be the first
Proton mission for HISPASAT. The heavy-lift Proton vehicle, with the proven
Breeze M upper stage, will lift off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in
Kazakhstan. The launch will follow several launches from other international
satellite operators.
About Amazonas
Amazonas will be the biggest of the HISPASAT fleet that will cover Brazil
and the rest of America, Europe and Northern Africa with transatlantic and
Pan-American capacity. Amazonas will therefore be the first satellite
conceived and designed for Latin America with coverage and power appropriate
for the specific needs of satellite communication in the region. With this
satellite, HISPASAT has plans to offer a wide range of services including
the traditional satellite telecommunication services as well as content
broadcasting, Internet access and broadband services..
The chosen configuration is a satellite with 32 active transponders in
Ku-band and 19 active transponders in C-band. The Astrium platform is the
Eurostar 3000 and it will have an operating life of 15 years and a total
launching mass of approximately 4,600 kg. This type of spacecraft is
currently scheduled to be launched by Proton/Breeze M in late 2003 for
another customer’s mission.
“The Latin American market, where HISPASAT will launch this new
communications satellite, takes on essential strategic value for the future
of HISPASAT. And this is not only because of historic, cultural and
linguistic ties with America, but also because of the extraordinary
contribution that the communication satellites can make for its future
economic and social development,” said HISPASAT CEO Jacinto García Palacios.
“ILS is honored to be selected by HISPASAT to provide launch services for
Amazonas, another critical commercial satellite for HISPASAT’s expanding
business,” said ILS President Mark Albrecht. “It is therefore with great
pride for ILS – and for our shareholders Lockheed Martin of the U.S. and
Khrunichev of Russia — that we continue the partnership for a third
consecutive launch. This mission brings us together not only with HISPASAT,
but also with HISPASAT’s broad base of European and Latin America partners
and shareholders in the Amazonas program.”
About ILS
ILS is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Khrunichev State Research and
Production Space Center of Russia. ILS offers the broadest range of launch
services in the world along with products with the highest reliability in
the industry. ILS’ Atlas rockets and their Centaur upper stages are built by
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. The three-stage Proton and the Breeze M
upper stage are assembled by Khrunichev at its plant near Moscow.
About HISPASAT
HISPASAT, the Spanish satellite telecommunications operator, manages the 30
degrees West and 61degrees West orbital positions, from where its satellite
system operates as an ideal vehicle for communication on both sides of the
Atlantic, taking care of the communication needs of European and American
telecommunication companies and radio broadcasting firms. HISPASAT leaves
its mark on Europe, Northern Africa and America with broadcasting power and
maximum flexibility. This large capacity has enabled HISPASAT to position
itself as an operator of reference in the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking
markets by playing an important role in television and radio broadcasting as
well as in the development of digital TV.
