WATCH LAUNCH VIDEO. Arianespace’s mission delivered the Astra 2F and GSAT-10 satellites to geostationary transfer orbit.
Lifting off in late afternoon sunlight at 6:18 pm local time from the Spaceport in French Guiana, Ariane 5 deployed its two telecommunications satellites passengers during a flight lasting 30 minutes.
This was Arianespace’s fifth Ariane 5 flight of 2012, with a payload lift performance of more than 10,200 kg. – which includes a combined mass of some 9,400 kilos for the Astra 2F and GSAT-10 spacecraft, plus the launcher’s dual-payload dispenser system and associated integration hardware.
Chairman and CEO Jean-Yves Le Gall said that the mission marked the 51st consecutive success for Ariane 5, “demonstrating Arianespace’s unrelenting efforts to insure reliability for its customers that is unequaled in the launch services industry.”
Following its deployment by Ariane 5, Astra 2F will be operated by Luxembourg-based SES for the delivery of DTH and next-generation broadband services in Europe, the Middle East and Arica.
“Astra 2F was the 36th satellite launched by our company for SES, and as with all of the others, it enables SES to reinforce its no. 1 position in direct broadcasting by satellite,” Le Gall said in a post-mission speech at the Spaceport. “This new success results from a particularly intense relationship with SES over the long term, and is in the framework of a multi-launch agreement that allows even more flexibility and bring a tailored response to the needs of our customer.”
GSAT-10, which was built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) using its I-3K satellite bus, has a liftoff mass of some 3,400 kilo, and will be deployed from Ariane 5’s lower passenger position at approximately 30 min. into the flight.
You can watch a video of the launch on the special Ariane TV website.
