SIRIUS 4 satellite successfully launched - New SIRIUS satellite at orbital position 5° East
18 Nov, 2007
SES SIRIUS, an SES ASTRA company, announced today that its new SIRIUS 4 satellite has been successfully launched into orbit. SIRIUS 4 roared into space onboard an ILS Proton rocket from Baikonur this morning at 04.39 local time - 23.39 CET. The satellite will now be brought into its final orbital position within the next weeks and will be made commercially available beginning of January 2008 after extensive in-orbit testing. SES ASTRA is an SES company (Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG).
Click here to view a close-up of SIRIUS 4 Launch
SIRIUS 4 will be located at 5° East, SIRIUS' orbital position for delivering broadcast and broadband services across Europe, and will also transmit HDTV channels. With its satellite fleet SIRIUS reaches 20 million homes in Europe.
"We are very proud and satisfied that the SIRIUS 4 mission has been a success", said Håkan Sjödin, Managing Director of SES SIRIUS. "SIRIUS 4 will benefit our customers, extend our coverage and service in Eastern Europe. The success of the SIRIUS 4 mission is a milestone in our company history and we would like to underline the very good cooperation with our launch partners, International Launch Services and Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems ."
"This was an especially important mission for ILS and our customer, SES SIRIUS," said ILS President Frank McKenna. "ILS and our partner, Khrunichev, continue to focus on performance and on our long-term relationship with the SES group of companies."
The pictures of the launch will be available at www.ses-sirius.com together with the related press release from our partner ILS.
For further information please contact:
Håkan Sjödin Anna-Karin Modigh
SES SIRIUS AB SES SIRIUS AB
+46 8 505 645 00 +46 8 505 645 68
+46 708 94 25 85 +46 708 94 25 86
hakan.sjodin@ses-sirius.com anna-karin.modigh@ses-sirius.com
About SES SIRIUS AB
SES SIRIUS AB owns and operates the SIRIUS satellite system (SIRIUS 2 and 3). SIRIUS is a leading satellite system in the Nordic and Baltic countries and Central and Eastern Europe. It offers cost-effective solutions for TV and radio broadcasts and broadband services in these regions. The SIRIUS satellites are positioned at 5 degrees East and offer reliable communication links across Europe.
SES SIRIUS AB is 75-percent owned by SES ASTRA, one of the world's leading satellite operators, and 25-percent by the state-owned company the Swedish Space Corporation.
About ILS www.ilslaunch.com
International Launch Services is a U.S.-Russian joint venture, between Space Transport Inc. and Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center with RSC Energia. ILS has the exclusive rights for worldwide commercial sales and mission management of satellite launches on Russia's premier vehicle, the Proton, and the future Angara vehicle. ILS is incorporated in Delaware in the United States, and is headquartered in McLean, Va., a suburb of Washington, D.C.
About Lockheed Martin www.lockheedmartin.com
Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 135,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
