[Satellite TODAY 06-10-10] Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) has shipped Dish Network’s EchoStar 15 communications satellite to the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan, where International Launch Services (ILS) will launch the spacecraft in early July, SS/L announced June 9.
    The EchoStar 15 direct-broadcast satellite, based on the 1300 platform, was contracted to SS/L in April 2008. Dish Network plans to use the satellite to power a range of applications in support of its upcoming high-definition programming and service expansion.
    “Not only did we meet the schedule but we delivered the satellite even earlier so that Dish Network could take advantage of an earlier launch vehicle availability,” SS/L President John Celli said in a statement.