It was fourth time lucky for Boeing's Delta II on 22 November when the booster lifted off from Cape Canaveral carrying Russia's Hughes-built Bonum 1 communications satellite. The launch had been ditched three times on successive days, starting on 19 November, by an engine gimballing problem, a communications glitch and a need to replace a fuel sensor.
The flight marked the first commercial Russian satellite launch by the USA. The Bonum satellite is a Hughes HS-376HP spin-stabilised spacecraft equipped with eight Ku band transponders.
Source: Flight International
