Sea Launch Embarks on the First Mission of 2004

The Odyssey Launch Platform
and the Sea Launch Commander have departed Sea Launch Home Port for the launch
of the Telstar 14/Estrela do Sul 1 communications satellite. Built by Space
Systems/Loral for Loral Skynet, the satellite is scheduled for launch on a
Zenit-3SL vehicle, January 9, at the start of a two-hour launch window that
will open at 8:02 pm PST (4:02:00 GMT, January 10).

The Sea Launch vessels are sailing from Long Beach, Calif., to the launch
site on the Equator at 154 degrees West Longitude. Upon arrival, the launch
team will initiate a 72-hour countdown, ballasting the Launch Platform to
launch depth, and performing final tests on the rocket and spacecraft. The
three-stage rocket will lift the 4694 kg (10,350 lb) spacecraft to a high
perigee geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). This is the first of three
consecutive missions Sea Launch will execute for Space Systems/Loral in 2004.
Following the Telstar 14/Estrela do Sul 1 mission, Sea Launch is scheduled to
launch DIRECTV-7S and then Telstar-18.

The Sea Launch team will deliver the Telstar 14/Estrela do Sul 1
spacecraft to GTO to support a final orbital position at 63 degrees West
Longitude. The SS/L 1300 series spacecraft carries 41 Ku-band transponders
with five unique and interconnecting coverage beams. Fifty percent of the
satellite’s power will be dedicated to Brazil, providing a dedicated Ku-band
solution for the Brazilian marketplace. The satellite’s other beams will
cover the Americas and the North Atlantic Ocean, where Connexion by Boeing(TM)
will use the satellite to provide its Internet-to-aircraft service.

Space Systems/Loral, a subsidiary of Loral Space and Communications, is a
premier designer, manufacturer and integrator of powerful satellites and
satellite systems and also provides a range of related services that include
mission control operations and procurement of launch services. Based in Palo
Alto, Calif., the company has an international base of commercial and
governmental customers whose applications include broadband digital
communications, direct-to-home broadcast, defense communications,
environmental monitoring and air traffic control.

Sea Launch Company, LLC, headquartered in Long Beach, Calif., and marketed
through Boeing Launch Services ( www.boeing.com/launch ), is the world’s most
reliable commercial launch services provider. With the advantage of the only
launch site on the Equator, the reliable Zenit-3SL rocket can lift a heavier
spacecraft mass or provide longer life on orbit, offering best value plus
schedule assurance. Sea Launch offers the most direct and cost-effective
route to geostationary orbit. For additional information, visit the Sea
Launch website at: www.sea-launch.com