AsiaSat 6 launch

SpaceX has successfully launched Asia Satellite Telecommunications’ AsiaSat 6 communications satellite from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, US, aboard its Falcon 9 rocket.

The launch comes after SpaceX Falcon 9 took-off AsiaSat 8 on 5 August.

The AsiaSat 6 spacecraft was successfully separated from the launch vehicle around 32 minutes after lift-off and the first signals were received 55 minutes after launch, AsiaSat said.

AsiaSat 6 will now shift to its operational position, around 36,000km above the Equator, and will enter commercial use after in-orbit testing.

"The addition of AsiaSat 6 to AsiaSat’s expanding fleet of five in-orbit satellites including the new AsiaSat 8 significantly enhances our capability to offer a wider range of transponder capacity to our clients."

AsiaSat president and CEO William Wade said: "The addition of AsiaSat 6 to AsiaSat’s expanding fleet of five in-orbit satellites including the new AsiaSat 8 significantly enhances our capability to offer a wider range of transponder capacity to our clients.

"We look forward to offering more quality satellite services on AsiaSat 6 to serve the fast growing demand in the Asia-Pacific region."

Built-around Space Systems/Loral (SSL) 1300 platform, AsiaSat 6 features 28 C-band transponders and two beams, including a global beam and a regional beam.

The launch was initially scheduled for 27 August; however, it was delayed due to a failure of a SpaceX test rocket.

SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said at the time: "What we do want to triple-check is whether even highly improbable corner case scenarios have the optimal fault detection and recovery logic."

AsiaSat 6’s 28-transponder capacity will be shared by Thailand’s satellite operator Thaicom and AsiaSat, as part of a contract signed in December 2011.

Image: AsiaSat 6 took-off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, US. Photo: courtesy of Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited.

Defence Technology