Intelsat 16 Launch Successful; Offers Expanded Capacity for DTH Services in Latin America
Luxembourg, 11 February 2010
Intelsat S.A., the world’s leading provider of fixed satellite services, announced today that International Launch Services (ILS) successfully launched the Intelsat 16 satellite (IS-16). The Proton Breeze M vehicle lifted off from Kazahkstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:39 p.m. ET yesterday, 11 February, followed by spacecraft separation and signal acquisition over nine hours later at approximately 5:14 a.m. ET this morning.
The satellite, built by Orbital Sciences Corporation, will provide expansion capacity for SKY Mexico’s direct-to-home services, including High Definition programming. In addition, IS-16 will be available to provide backup capacity for SKY Brazil.
“The IS-16 satellite, at 58 degrees W, expands Intelsat’s Latin American direct-to-home platform,†said Dave McGlade, Intelsat CEO. “We thank the skilled engineering and operations teams of ILS, Khrunichev, Orbital and Intelsat for a successful mission.â€
IS-16 is the first Intelsat launch of 2010, and the third in an 11-satellite investment campaign, the largest in Intelsat’s history. The investment program is expected to provide enhanced high-powered capacity to Intelsat’s global fleet. Intelsat’s next launch is expected to be the Intelsat New Dawn satellite, which is to deliver new capacity for voice, wireless backhaul, Internet and media applications for customers serving Africa.
About Intelsat
Intelsat is the leading provider of fixed satellite services worldwide. For over 45 years, Intelsat has been delivering information and entertainment for many of the world’s leading media and network companies, multinational corporations, Internet Service Providers and governmental agencies. Intelsat’s satellite, teleport and fiber infrastructure is unmatched in the industry, setting the standard for transmissions of video, data and voice services. From the globalization of content and the proliferation of HD, to the expansion of cellular networks and broadband access, with Intelsat, advanced communications anywhere in the world are closer, by far.