The Boeing-led international Sea Launch consortium will launch ICO Global Communications' first satellite, the ICO F1, aboard its Zenit 3SL booster from the Odyssey offshore launch platform on 12 March. It will be the third Sea Launch flight and its second fully commercial mission from the platform, which is at 154°W in the equatorial mid-Pacific Ocean, about 320km (170nm) east of Christmas Island. The 2,750kg (6,050lb) Hughes HS-601-based ICO F1 will be launched into a 10,390km circular medium-Earth orbit. The ICO fleet will comprise 10 operational satellites, five each in orthogonal planes inclined 45° to the equator.
Source: Flight International