Ariane 5 rocket lifts Brazilian, Vietnamese satellites into space

by Staff Writers
Kourou, French Guiana (AFP) April 18, 2008
An Ariane 5 rocket blasted off here on Friday and successfully deployed telecommunications satellites for Brazil and Vietnam, Arianespace said.

The heavy-lift Ariane 5 ECA successfully placed the Brazilian Star One C2 and Vietnamese VINASAT-1 satellites into geostationary transfer orbit, Arianespace officials said.

VINASAT-1, a 2.6-tonne craft built by US firm Lockheed Martin for Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group, will be the country's first telecommunications satellite, providing radio, television and telephone services across the country.

Built by Thales Alenia Space, the 4.1-tonne Star One C2 will be used by Brazilian telecommunications operator Star One to provide telecommunications, multimedia and Internet services over South America.

The second of seven planned flights for 2008, it was the 24th consecutive mission success of an Ariane 5 rocket, Arianespace said.

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LAUNCH PAD

Its A Go For Arianespace's Second Ariane 5 Mission Of 2008

Kourou, French Guiana (SPX) Apr 17, 2008
The second Ariane 5 flight of 2008 was given a green light for its April 18 liftoff following the launch readiness review at the Spaceport in French Guiana. This review, which is conducted prior to each mission, validated the readiness of Ariane 5, its dual-passenger payload of the Star One C2 and Vinasat-1 satellites, the launch infrastructure at Europe's Spaceport, and the network of downrange tracking stations.

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