AsiaSat 7 Spacecraft Separation Successfully Completed
Hong Kong, 26 November 2011 – AsiaSat 7, a new communications satellite of Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited (AsiaSat), was launched at Hong Kong Time 3:10 a.m. on the 26th of November on an ILS Proton Breeze M launch vehicle from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
9 hours and 13 minutes after liftoff, AsiaSat 7 successfully separated from the launch vehicle. Over the next few days, the satellite will arrive at the geostationary orbit, some 36,000 km above the Equator.
“We are extremely pleased that AsiaSat 7 has successfully achieved this significant launch milestone. We greatly appreciate the efforts of our partners – International Launch Services, Khrunichev and Space Systems/Loral for their precision and professionalism in achieving this launch success,” said William Wade, President and Chief Executive Officer of AsiaSat.
“With AsiaSat 7 successfully launched well ahead of the planned date for AsiaSat 3S’s replacement, we can assure continuity of service to customers, while at the same time adding to our on-orbit capacity to service new business.”
AsiaSat 7 is a new generation satellite designed to replace AsiaSat 3S at the orbital location of 105.5 degrees East. Based on the Space Systems/Loral 1300 platform, AsiaSat 7 will support a broad range of applications for the Asia-Pacific region, including television broadcast and VSAT networks.
AsiaSat 7 carries 28 C-band and 17 Ku-band transponders, and a Ka-band payload. Its region-wide high power C-band beam covers Asia, the Middle East, Australasia and Central Asia, with Ku-band beams serving East Asia, South Asia and a steerable Ku beam.
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About AsiaSat
AsiaSat, the leading regional satellite operator in Asia, serves over two-thirds of the world’s population with its four satellites, AsiaSat 3S at 105.5ºE, AsiaSat 4 at 122ºE, AsiaSat 5 at 100.5ºE and AsiaSat 7. The AsiaSat satellite fleet provides services to both the broadcast and telecommunications industries. Over 500 television and radio channels are now delivered by the company’s satellites offering access to over 620 million TV households across the Asia-Pacific region. AsiaSat also provides telecommunications operators and end users services such as voice networks, private VSAT networks and broadband multimedia. AsiaSat has ordered two more satellites, AsiaSat 6 and AsiaSat 8, planned to be launched by early 2014. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asia Satellite Telecommunications Holdings Limited, a company listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (Stock Code: 1135). For more information, please visit www.asiasat.com.
Media Inquiries:
Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited
Sabrina Cubbon, Vice President, Sales and Marketing
Tel : (852) 2500 0899
Mobile : (852) 9097 1210
Email : scubbon@asiasat.com
Winnie Pang, Manager, Corporate Affairs
Tel : (852) 2500 0880
Email : wpang@asiasat.com