SAN DIEGO, Calif., Aug. 20, 1997 – International Launch Services (ILS) announced today that a combined Russian and American team is conducting final preparations to launch a Proton rocket on August 28 with PanAmSat Corporation’s PAS-5 communications satellite aboard.  The rocket is scheduled to lift off from Baikonur Cosmodrome in the Republic of Kazakhstan at 6:33 a.m. (8:33 p.m. USA Eastern Daylight Time, August 27). The launch window is ten minutes long.

The three-stage Proton is produced by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center at its factory near Moscow.  The fourth stage is built by RSC Energia, also near Moscow.  The satellite was built by Hughes Space and Communications at its facilities in El Segundo, Calif., and is an HS-601 HP design.

This will be the second of six planned ILS commercial launches on Proton this year.  Proton is also the primary heavy lifter for Russian government payloads as well as selected commercial launches that were secured by Khrunichev before the advent of ILS.

Once on orbit at 58 degrees West longitude, PAS-5 will provide direct-to-home television services to Mexico and video distribution and telecommunications services throughout the Americas with access to Europe.

The launch will be broadcast live for U.S. downlink on Galaxy 9, Transponder 6 (C-band) starting at 8:00 p.m EDT.   Notification of a successful launch will not occur until spacecraft separation, approximately 6 hours and 41 minutes after liftoff.   Launch status updates will be available on the ILS launch hotline – 1-800-852-4980.

ILS is a joint venture stock company established in 1995 to market Proton and the Lockheed Martin Astronautics-built Atlas to the worldwide satellite launch market.  ILS is owned by Lockheed Martin Corporation Commercial Launch Services and the Lockheed Khrunichev Energia International joint venture.  ILS is headquartered in San Diego, Calif., USA.