Orbcomm, SES Prepare for SpaceX Falcon 9 Missions in December and January

A Falcon 9 leaving the hangar. Photo: SpaceX

[Via Satellite 12-11-2015] SpaceX customer Orbcomm announced its launch provider is planning to conduct the static fire of its upgraded Falcon 9 rocket on Dec. 16, preceding the launch of 11 Orbcomm Second Generation (OG2) satellites.

Once the static fire is completed to verify the readiness of the Falcon 9 rocket, the mission is targeted to launch about three days later between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). The launch is Orbcomm’s second and final OG2 Mission at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., completing the company’s new constellation.

SES also announced that its first electric propulsion satellite, SES 9, arrived at Cape Canaveral Dec. 10, and is being processed for a mid-January 2016 launch on board SpaceX’s upgraded Falcon 9 rocket. SES 9 will be collocated with SES 7 at 108.2 degrees east and provide both replacement and incremental capacity for a prime video neighborhood over Asia which currently serves more than 22 million households.