MOSCOW. March 26 (Interfax-AVN) - The first for this year commercial launch of the Proton booster rocket with the Intelsat 903 communication satellite will happen from the Baikonur cosmodrome on Saturday, a spokesman for the Khrunichev state space research and production center told Interfax-Military News Agency.
The works on the spacecraft preparation for the launch take place in full accordance with the schedule, the spokesman said.
The Russian-U.S. International Launch Services (ILS) joint venture is planning to use the booster rocket to put the satellite in orbit. Earlier starting from 1995 the ILS successfully launched four spacecraft for the Intelsat company using the U.S. Atlas booster rocket.
At present the step-by-step switching to the use of the modernized Proton-M booster rocket is underway. The Proton-M has an improved control system, improved specifications and increased volume designed to locate the payload. The use of the Briz-M acceleration unit designed by the center for the Proton-M booster rocket will enable the spacecraft to increase the payload weight up to six tons by 2003.
All commercial launches of the Proton booster rocket in accordance with a Russian government regulation happen under the auspices of the ILS joint venture. The U.S. party is represented by the Lockhead-Martin corporation while the Russian one by the Khrunichev center and Energia missile and space corporation.
The Intelsat 9 spacecraft is the new generation of powerful space systems produced by the Space Systems Loral company which is the largest designer of satellite systems.
Telecommunication companies from over 200 countries worldwide use communication services of the Intelsat series satellites.