Khrunichev Space Center Press Release
In accordance with the Roscosmos manifest, the launch of Proton-M ILV / Eutelsat-9B from the Baikonur Cosmodrome is scheduled for 30 January 2016, at 01:20 Moscow Time.
On 25 January the technical management and State Commission met to review the Proton LV / Eutelsat-9B spacecraft readiness for rollout to the launch pad. Based on the results of the ILV ground processing and the launch pad ground infrastructure readiness, the State Commission ruled that the ILV rollout to the launch pad be carried out on 26 January.
On the previous day, technical specialists at the 92-A50 processing and testing facility completed the ILV assembly including the mechanical and electrical mating of the Proton-M LV with the ascent unit, which is comprised of the Eutelsat-9B spacecraft, the adapter system and Breeze-M upper stage shrouded under the payload fairing. On Sunday of 24 January, the ILV was transferred from the processing and testing facility to the fueling area where the upper stage low-pressure tanks were filled. The fueling operations completed the Proton ILV preparations at the processing and testing facility.
The upcoming launch will be performed as stipulated by a long-term Proton M launch services contract signed in October 2015 between the International Launch Services (ILS), a Khrunichev Space Center subsidiary, and one of the leading international operators, the Paris-based Eutelsat Communications. Over the past 15 years, as many as 11 spacecraft were launched on the Proton LV for the Eutelsat orbital group.
The Eutelsat 9B satellite is intended to provide digital TV and data services over the Nordic and Baltic countries. The satellite was built by the Toulouse-based Airbus Defence and Space, the French division of Europe’s Airbus Group. The spacecraft lift-off mass is approximately 5162 kg.
Both the Proton launch vehicle and Breeze-M upper stage were designed, and are serially produced, at the Khrunichev Space Center. The modernized Proton-M / Breeze-M upper stage configuration is capable of providing a GTO delivery for payloads with a mass in excess of 6 MT.