ARIANESPACE RESUMED commercial-launch operations on 28 March with the successful launch of the Brasilsat B2 and Hot Bird 1 satellites into geostationary-transfer orbit. The V71/Ariane 44LP launch from Kourou, Guiana, came 117 days after the failure of V70 (Flight International, 29 March-4 April).
The Ariane 4 fleet was grounded after the PanAmSat (PAS) 3 was lost on the 1 December flight of the V70, following an earlier failure in 1994, resulting in the loss of two satellites. Modifications have been made to the launcher's third stage.
The V72 is scheduled to launch the European Space Agency's remote-sensing satellite, the ERS 2 on 20 April. Arianespace now has 38 outstanding satellites to launch, after confirmation that it has won the contract to launch the replacement PAS 3R spacecraft.
McDonnell Douglas (MDC), meanwhile, has received a significant commercial boost with the selection of its Delta 2 to launch the first four Space Systems/Loral Globalstar worldwide cellular telephone and digital-communications satellites during a single launch in 1997. The contract is worth $50 million, with the option of 13 further launches. These will complete the 48 satellite constellations by 1998, with eight in-orbit spares.
MDC has already won a contract from the competing Motorola Company for eight launches of five Iridium satellites each, starting in 1996.
Source: Flight International
