[Satellite TODAY 09-13-11] Russian Space Agency officials notified Globalstar that the mid-October launch of its six second-generation satellites would be delayed so that the agency could undertake complete inspections of its Soyuz 2.1a launch vehicles, Globalstar confirmed Sept. 12.

   According to Russian officials, the inspection is a precautionary measure following a recent launch failure and includes three Soyuz launch vehicles that will be used for International Space Station missions, as well as the Soyuz designated for Globalstar’s launch.

   Globalstar’s Soyuz launch services provider is Arianespace. Globalstar contracted Arianespace to conduct Globalstar satellite launches in clusters of six. The first two launches were successfully conducted in October 2010 and July 2011 and two additional launches are expected to take place in the coming months. The two companies said they expect to receive a formal report from their Russian partners in the coming days. “Once the report is provided and analyzed, we will announce a new launch date,” Globalstar said in a company statement.