ILS Proton rocket launches Intelsat 23 satellite to geostationary orbit

Telecom satellite Intelsat 23 was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on 14 October aboard the International Launch Services (ILS) Proton vehicle.

After nine hours and 30 minutes, Intelsat 23 separated from the Proton vehicle’s third stage Breeze M, which manoeuvred the satellite near to a geostationary orbit about 23,000 miles above the Earth.

The satellite carried 24 C-band and 15 Ku-band transponders and is expected to operate for more than 18 years, according to Luxembourg-based satellite service provider Intelsat.

Positioned at 53° West longitude, the spacecraft is expected to offer telecom services to customers in North and Latin America, Western Europe, Africa and some islands in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

Intelsat chief executive David McGlade said Intelsat 23 will refresh satellite capacity across four continents, offering critical services to communication providers.

"This launch continues our current fleet replacement and expansion campaign, which is scheduled for completion in early 2013," McGlade said.

Intelsat 23 replaces the existing Intelsat 707, an ageing satellite launched in 1996, and will provide enhanced capacity for enterprise, oil and gas, and data networking applications.

The Proton Breeze M vehicle was developed by Khrunichev State Research and Space Production Center of Moscow.

Initially, the launch was scheduled for 23 August, but was postponed as two telecom satellites were placed in unintended orbits due to a failure in the Russian Proton-M rocket’s upper stage.

Developed by Orbital Sciences, Intelsat 23 is the final launch for Intelsat in 2012.

Intelsat 27 will be launched in the first quarter of 2013, marking the end of Intelsat’s global broadband mobility platform.

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Image: Intelsat 23 replaces the existing Intelsat 707, an ageing satellite launched in 1996. Photo: ILS International Launch Services Inc.