Ministry of Hajj issued over 150,000 Nusuk cards for the Hajj of 2025    Saudi Arabia deports 12,866 illegal residents in a week    SFDA clears first 44-ton medical shipment for Hajj pilgrims    Over 13 million worshipers pray at Rawdah Sharif in a year    Pope Francis laid to rest at historic funeral in Rome    Massive explosion at Iran's Shahid Rajaee Port injures over 500 people    Russia claims full control of Kursk region after ousting Ukrainian forces    Former US congressman George Santos sentenced to over 7 years for fraud and identity theft    Saudi orchestra to perform at Sydney Opera House in May    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Nammos Amala Resort to open soon with Saudi-Greek designs    Saudi Arabia completes 674 Vision 2030 initiatives, achieves 93% of KPIs as ninth-year milestone marked    GACA chief chairs 16th meeting of the Steering Committee on aviation's strategy    Alkhorayef praises advancements in Al-Kharj food industries sector    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Saudi Arabia open to expanded 64-team World Cup in 2034, says sports minister    Jennifer Lopez dazzles in Jeddah with a Formula 1 performance    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Russia puts into orbit Saudi telecoms satellite
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 05 - 06 - 2010

International Launch Services (ILS), a leading launch services provider for the global commercial satellite industry, successfully carried the BADR-5 satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit on Friday on an ILS Proton for Arabsat of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Arabsat is the largest satellite operator in the Middle East and North Africa and has been ranked the ninth largest satellite operator in the world.
This was the fourth ILS Proton launch and the 6th overall Proton launch this year. The BADR-5 satellite, built by EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, was also the 23nd consecutive successful Proton launch in 23 months, the company said in a statement.
The ILS Proton Breeze M launched from Pad 39 at the Cosmodrome at 4:00 a.m. today local time (6:00 p.m. EDT, 11:00 p.m. GMT). After a nine-hour, 13-minute mission, the Breeze M successfully released the BADR-5 satellite, weighing 5420 kg, into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
This was the 357th launch for Proton since its inaugural flight in 1965, and the 60th ILS Proton launch overall. The Proton Breeze M launch vehicle was developed and built by Khrunichev Research and Production Space Center of Moscow, one of the pillars of the Russian space industry and the majority shareholder in ILS.
The BADR-5 satellite was built on Astrium's E3000 platform with a Thales Alenia Space supplied communications payload. BADR-5 will be collocated with the BADR-4 and BADR-6 Direct-to-Home satellites at Arabsat's 26 degrees East longitude video “hot spot”. BADR-5 will provide the highest level of service within the MENA region. The satellite carries 56 Ku-band transponders 4 Ka-band transponders and has been designed to have a minimum expected service time of 15 years.
Frank McKenna, ILS President said, “It was an honor to be entrusted to launch BADR-5, a powerful satellite and the first of Arabsat's 5th generation satellites to expand the communications capabilities for the region. Working with our long term partners at Astrium, Arabsat and Thales and our partner Khrunichev, this program was flawlessly coordinated from contract to launch. Our congratulations and thanks go out to the entire team for their tireless efforts and exceptional performance with this on time launch on ILS Proton. “
“This was our 14th launch with ILS,” said Evert Dudok, CEO of Astrium Satellites, “and our experience with ILS and Khrunichev over the years has clearly demonstrated that they are a high performing team. As a world leader in telecommunication satellites, we are particularly pleased to be a key part of this important new step for this Arabsat mission of expansion and growth.”
Khalid Balkheyour, Arabsat president and CEO, said “the launch of BADR-5 on ILS Proton was a significant event, kicking off the expansion of our fleet with the first of the new 5th generation Arabsat satellites with an unprecedented service for the MENA region. A special thank you to our collective teams at ILS, Khrunichev, Astrium and Thales. This satellite was launched on-time with perfect execution and will support our leadership role in the providing telecommunication services to the Arab world.”


Clic here to read the story from its source.