An Ariane 5 ECA rocket lofted the Spaceway 2 and Telkom-2 satellites into orbit, Arianespace announced. The vehicle lifted off from Kourou, French Guiana, at 8:46 p.m. local time Nov. 16.

Spaceway F2, based on a Boeing 702 platform, will be located at 99.2 degrees West and broadcast high-definition (HD) signals to direct-to-home television customers. The satellite, along with Spaceway F1, which was launched in April by Sea Launch, will allow DirecTV to provide local high definition (HD) channels to customers in 36 major by early 2006. DirecTV plans to place two more next-generation spacecraft in orbit by 2007, increasing HD capacity to more than 1,500 local and 150 national channels, the company said.

Telkom-2, built by Orbital Sciences Corp., will reside at either 118 degrees or 108 degrees East and allow PT Telkomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (PT Telekom) to offer telecommunications services in Indonesia, the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia. Handover of the satellite to PT Telkom is scheduled to take place in December.