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Roundtable Discussion with the Passengers of the 100th Ariane 5 Rocket

By Jeffrey Hill, Mark Holmes | September 25, 2018

An Ariane 5 Evolution Cryotechnique Type A (ECA) rocket made history as the 100th Ariane 5 launch carried the Azerspace 2/Intelsat 38 and Horizons 3e satellites into orbit from the French Guiana Space Center. Over the past 22 years, European commercial launcher Arianespace has provided an important sense of stability for the satellite industry through the services of its Ariane 5 rocket, which has orbited a total of 207 satellites in this timeframe. The 100th Ariane 5 mission, its 6th this year, also represents Arianespace’s 300th launch across all of its Ariane, Soyuz, and Vega rockets.

Horizons 3e is a new spacecraft from Intelsat and Sky Perfect JSAT’s joint venture, Horizons Satellite. Built by Boeing, Horizons 3e will serve as the sixth satellite of the Intelsat Epic NG service. Once launched, it will provide coverage over the Pacific Ocean Region from the 169 degrees east orbital slot. Horizons 3e is equipped with a mixed C- and Ku-band payload providing High-Throughput Satellite (HTS) services via small spotbeams.

Azerspace 2/Intelsat 38 is Azercosmos’ second telecommunications satellite. Built by SSL, Azerspace 2/Intelsat 38 will be placed into Geostationary Orbit (GEO) at 45 degrees east to provide coverage over Europe, Central and South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Intelsat will use the satellite to host leading Direct-to-Home (DTH) television platforms for the fast-growing Central and Eastern Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions and provide critical broadband connectivity for corporate network and government services in Africa.

Lifting off from the Spaceport in French Guiana, Ariane 5 ascends on its milestone 100th launch, flight VA243, carrying Horizons 3e and Azerspace-2/Intelsat 38 Photo: Arianespace

Lifting off from the Spaceport in French Guiana, Ariane 5 ascends on its milestone 100th launch, flight VA243, carrying Horizons 3e and Azerspace-2/Intelsat 38
Photo: Arianespace

To celebrate Arianespace’s 100th Ariane 5 mission, Via Satellite presents an interview with executive leaders from each of the mission’s customers — Intelsat Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Stephen Spengler, SKY Perfect JSAT Board Director and Senior Managing Executive Officer Koki Koyama, and Azercosmos Deputy Chairman and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Dunay Badirkhanov.

Tomorrow, we will also present an interview of Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël, conducted by Via Satellite Editorial Director Mark Holmes. During the interview, Israël talks about what the milestone means for Arianespace and the legacy of its Ariane 5 rocket, his view of the future satellite industry landscape, and a sneak peek at some new developments regarding the upcoming Ariane 6 rocket!

Horizons 3e is “topped off” in the Spaceport’s S5 payload preparation facility, readying the Boeing-built satellite for its integration on Ariane 5. Photo: Arianespace

Horizons 3e is “topped off” in the Spaceport’s S5 payload preparation facility, readying the Boeing-built satellite for its integration on Ariane 5. Photo: Arianespace

VIA SATELLITE: How important are the satellites being launched on this mission to your future plans?

Koyama: Horizons 3e is one of our jointly-owned satellites with Intelsat and the first HTS for JSAT. The main market we are anticipating is mobility and cellular backhaul, where the demand is continuously growing in the Asia-Pacific region and we have secured multiple pre-launch contracts. Together with our second HTS, JCSAT-18 — which we expect to launch next year — the addition of our two HTS will diversify our fleet and enable us to offer flexibility to customers for broader needs and applications.

Spengler: With Arianespace’s assistance, Intelsat’s satellites will enable media companies in Central and Eastern Europe and the Asia Pacific to grow their DTH businesses. Corporate and enterprise networks will expand in Africa. Maritime and aero mobility customers will have seamless, high-powered broadband connectivity along the most trafficked routes around the world. Fixed, mobile, and government network operators will expand their businesses throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Badirkhanov: Azerspace-2/Intelsat 38 will be our second telecommunication satellite, and will expand on the current capacity of Azerspace-1. This satellite will also increase the coverage area and spectrum of services provided by Azercosmos, offering enhanced capacity, coverage and service offerings to support the growing demand in the region for DTH government and network services in Europe, Central and South Asia, the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Azerspace-2/Intelsat-38 is moved into a mobile container for its transfer to the Spaceport’s S3B facility, where it will be fueled. Flight VA243. Horizons 3e and Azerspace-2/Intelsat-38. Photo: Arianespace

Azerspace-2/Intelsat-38 is moved into a mobile container for its transfer to the Spaceport’s S3B facility, where it will be fueled. Flight VA243. Horizons 3e and Azerspace-2/Intelsat-38. Photo: Arianespace

VIA SATELLITE: Is reliability or cost more important when searching for a launch partner?

Badirkhanov: We prioritize reliability of the service provider as successful and timely launch of a satellite depends on this criterion. The price of the launch vehicles — which is usually one fourth of the whole project — is one of the top factors in selection of the service provider, especially with the introduction of reusable launch vehicles. The price has substantially dropped and created price pressure in the existing market. There are some other factors for launch service provider selection, including a launcher’s past performance, suitability, and vehicle availability.

Koyama: Unlike a decade ago, we came to know that reliability could reside with cost as we’ve seen so many successful launches from Arianespace and other providers. In terms of how launch market assessment is evolving, we’re obviously seeing ample inflow of private money completely break the traditional concept of launch services procurement. Because of the emergence of newcomers, industry players are mutually influenced and getting more competitive, allowing us to enjoy various options.

Spengler: Because of Arianespace’s track record and reliability, we trusted the Ariane-5 launcher to place five out of our six next-generation, Intelsat EpicNG satellites into orbit. These launches are extremely important to us, because they helped us complete the Intelsat EpicNG global network with the addition of the Pacific Ocean region and to become the first global Ku-band HTS platform.

The completed Ariane 5 launch vehicle is shown inside the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building sporting its various customer and mission logos. Photo: Arianespace

The completed Ariane 5 launch vehicle is shown inside the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building sporting its various customer and mission logos. Photo: Arianespace

VIA SATELLITE: Why did you decide on Arianespace to launch your respective satellites? How would you describe your relationship with the company?

Koyama: We chose Arianespace because of their schedule assurance, reliability, performance and launch price and, so far, they meet our full expectations. Our business relations started more than a quarter-century ago and they have launched about half of our satellites to date. They know what we want and we know what they can provide.

Badirkhanov: For Azercosmos, Arianespace is more than just a service provider. We see them as a highly trusted business partner. Our cooperation with Arianespace started back in 2013 when we were in search of launch service provider for our first satellite Azerspace-1. In order to deliver Azerspace-1 timely and successfully, we researched the launch services market for the most reliable launcher. We found out that Ariane 5 had 63 consecutive successful launches between 2002 and 2013. So we opted for Arianespace. As it turned out, we made the right choice.

Spengler: Intelsat and Arianespace have a long, storied history together. We first began working with Arianespace in 1983 with Ariane 1 for the Intelsat 507 satellite. Since then, Arianespace has launched 54 satellites for Intelsat. They have been an important and reliable partner for us.

Don’t miss tomorrow’s interview with Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël discussing this milestone launch, the legacy of the Ariane 5 rocket, the future of satellite industry, and some new Ariane 6 developments.