Sea Launch + Eutelsat… Lofting The Atlantic Bird (Launch)

[SatNews] The launch will use a Zenit 3SL…

Eutelsat has assigned the launch of its ATLANTIC BIRD™ 7 communications satellite to Sea Launch. The satellite will be lofted into an optimized geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) via the reliable Zenit 3SL launch vehicle. The launch will occur from Sea Launch’s Odyssey launch platform after its transit to the equatorial launch site located at 154 degrees West, in international waters of the Pacific Ocean. The sea based transport vessel carrying the launch vehicle designated for ATLANTIC BIRD™ 7 departed the port at Oktyabrsky, Ukraine, on May 31, 2011, and arrived at Sea Launch’s Home Port facility in Long Beach, California on July 13, 2011.

The ATLANTIC BIRD™ 7 mission is planned for launch in September 2011. Built by Astrium, an EADS company, the ATLANTIC BIRD™ 7 satellite will weigh approximately 4,600 kilograms (10,141 lbs.) at launch. Its final geostationary orbit will be located at 7 degrees West, a key neighborhood for Eutelsat’s digital broadcasting markets in the Middle East and North Africa.

“We are delighted to be entrusted with this important launch assignment from Eutelsat,” said Kjell Karlsen, President of Sea Launch. “We have been working very hard during the past months to realign our supply chain under RSC Energia’s leadership and to provide Eutelsat with the visibility and transparency required to witness first-hand our on-schedule performance in the factories. We look forward to returning to launch operations and successfully executing our first mission with Eutelsat in support of their growing orbital infrastructure and expanded capacity. We sincerely appreciate Eutelsat’s continued confidence in Sea Launch, our launch team and our system.”