SES Launch Pushed Back as Co-passenger Hispasat Calls Timeout To Tweak Satellite

摘要

Satellite fleet operator SES's struggles with its Ariane 5 launch co-passengers continued Nov. 13 with the announcement that the Amazonas 4A satellite, scheduled to share an Ariane 5 launch with SES's Astra 5B, would not be ready for an early-December liftoff. Amazonas 4A is owned by Hispasat of Spain. Hispasat issued a statement saying "a number of adjustments ... need to be made to boost the satellite's reliability ... stemming from an anomaly detected during one of the last tests of the Amazonas 4 A before being transported to the launch pad.