.. or rather, putting it all together. We’ve been busy the last several days mating the SC to the adapter, mating the SC/Adapter to the Breeze M, encapsulating the whole assembly, and today, we mated them all with the Proton. We now have an integrated launch vehicle! We will perform some testing tomorrow, then it’s onto the Breeze M filling station and then the pad. On Tuesday, the SES customer gave us a taste from home – Bacon Lettuce and Tomato sandwiches. The American team loved them (I personally had 2), and the Russian team members had a sample of a uniquely American dish. As we like to say, bacon makes everything better.

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The SES and Orbital Sciences Corporation teams here are happy to report, the SES-1 spacecraft successfully completed its standalone testing – one of the first major hurdles to getting to launch. After standalone testing finished, the Propellant team from Orbital Sciences, with support from ILS and KhSC, filled the SES-1 spacecraft with hydrazine propellant. This potentially hazardous operation was safely completed yesterday, paving the way for joint operations to begin today, 11 April. This is the next phase of the campaign, where we start mating the various components together to make the integrated launch vehicle.

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The SES-1 launch team celebrated the Easter holiday this past weekend. Several members of the ILS team went to town to attend the midnight Easter Vigil Mass at the Russian Orthodox Church on Easter eve, and we awoke to Easter eggs and traditional cakes for breakfast. Later that afternoon, we had a joint BBQ with all the Russian and American personnel where we enjoyed California Tri-Tip beef and the excellent fried potatoes that the kitchen makes for us on special days. Top it off with the special Easter desserts, and we were all very stuffed by the end. The SC is doing well and continuing its standalone operations. The Proton and Breeze M are in the final stages of testing, and preparing for the arrival of the SC in order to start joining the entire assembly into the “integrated launch vehicle.”

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At 10AM sharp, local time, the AN-124 carrying the SES-1 spacecraft arrived in Baikonur, and soon the front door was opened and the Orbital, ILS, SES and KhSC teams got right to work unloading the precious cargo from plane. It was a bright, sunny spring day with temperatures in the 50’s, so it was near perfect conditions for the operations. The Container was transferred over to the rail car, as well as all the campaign support equipment, including our personal gear. After transferring the SC into Building 92A50 that night, it always feels like Christmas morning as we unload our personal gear and see the goodies that we sent in. The fitcheck will start tomorrow, and it will be a very long day for all the teams, so we are looking forward to getting the SC into Hall 103A so we can start the stand alone SC processing.

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Welcome to the third ILS Proton launch campaign for 2010 – the launch of the Orbital-built, SES-1 satellite for SES WORLD SKIES. Follow along with the mission team as they prepare for the launch.

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The SES-1 Early Team arrived safe and sound at Yubileiny Airfield on 27 March, where our KhSC and ZERKT friends welcomed us back for another campaign. Our team has a mix of Baikonur veterans, rookies, and even some of the spacecraft (SC) team who have previously worked other non-Proton Baikonur missions. After settling into the hotel, we started the campaign off with our inaugural coordination meeting the next morning. The day was spent getting the building configured for this campaign, certifying and verifying all support systems, and deploying all our various communications devices (radios, phone lines to the U.S., internet, and even the occasional bullhorn). With the arrival of the Breeze M on the 28th, we have all of the Proton hardware in Baikonur needed for the launch. We are now finalizing coordination and eagerly awaiting the arrival of the SC on 30 March.

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