Arianespace Takes Delivery of its 3rd Ariane 5 in 2008

(May 7, 2008) -- The launch vehicle for Ariane 5's third flight of 2008 is now under Arianespace responsibility after its delivery by prime contractor Astrium at the Spaceport in French Guiana.

Handover of the heavy-lift Ariane 5 ECA occurred with its transfer yesterday from the Launcher Integration Building - where Astrium performed the vehicle's build-up, to the Final Assembly Building - where Arianespace will carry out payload integration and final checkout.

This mission remains on schedule for May 23, with Ariane 5 carrying two passengers: Turksat 3A and Skynet 5C.

The upcoming flight underscores Arianespace's ability to match up diverse satellites for Ariane 5's trademark dual-payload missions: Skynet 5C is to deliver secure military relay links for military and government users, while Turksat 3A will provide telecommunication services and direct TV broadcasting for Turkey, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia.

Source : Arianespace

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