Arianespace Flight 137: First Launch of the Millennium

Arianespace successfully kicked off
its 2001 launch activity by orbiting Turksat 2A/Eurasiasat 1, an Alcatel Space
communications satellite for Turkish operator Eurasiasat S.A.M.

Building bridges between Europe and Asia

Eurasiasat 1 will bridge the continents of Europe and Asia, providing
communications links between Western Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and
the Far East.

Turksat 2A/Eurasiasat 1 is the third Turkish satellite to be boosted into
orbit by Ariane, following Turksat 1B in August 1994, and Turksat
1C in July
1996. The Turksat 2A/Eurasiasat 1 spacecraft is designed for a service life
exceeding 15 years.

Today’s launch is part of a turnkey contract awarded by Eurasiasat S.A.M.
to Alcatel Space. Based in Monaco, Eurasiasat S.A.M. is jointly owned by Turk
Telekom and Alcatel Space.

Ariane continues to set the standard for reliability and availability This
first successful launch in 2001 marks the 60th consecutive successful launch
of an Ariane 4.

Arianespace has maintained a rapid-paced launch schedule in 2000,
demonstrating its capability to adapt to customer satellite availability.
In
the year 2000 the launch services company has orbited 16 communications
satellites and four auxiliary payloads, using eight Ariane 4s and four Ariane
5s.

First launch of a very busy year

The next launch, Flight 139, is planned for February 7, when an Ariane 44L
will carry two communications satellites into orbit: SICRAL of the SITAB
consortium for the Italian Ministry of Defense and SKYNET 4F of Astrium for
the British Ministry of Defense.

Arianespace plans 10 other Ariane launches in 2001, bringing the year’s
total to 11.

Following today’s successful Flight 137, Arianespace’s backlog stands at
35 satellites to be launched, plus 9 ATV launches for the International
Space Station.

    Technical data

    Flight 137 launcher            Ariane 44P (with four solid-propellant
                                   strap-on boosters) 102nd Ariane 4 launcher
                                   since service entry
    Launch site                    ELA-2, Guiana Space Center, Kourou, French
                                   Guiana

                                 Launch time
    7:09 pm                   January 10                    Kourou
    22:09                     January 10                    GMT
    5:09 pm                   January 10                    Washington, D.C.
    11:09 pm                  January 10                    Paris
    12:09 am                  January 11                    Istanbul

                  Turksat  2A/Eurasiasat 1 for Alcatel Space
    Communications satellite: Spacebus 3000B3 platform
    Prime contractor          Alcatel Space Industries, Cannes, France
    Mass at liftoff           3,535 kg.
    Payload                   32 Ku-band transponders (20 BSS channels and 12
                              FSS channels)
    Orbital position          42 degrees East, over Somalia
    Coverage zone             Europe, Middle East, Asia

                Orbital parameters (at third stage injection)
                              Actual                   Target
    Perigee                   179.8 km.                179.8 km. (+3)
    Apogee                    35,932 km.               35,934 km. (+240)
    Inclination               6.50 degrees             6.50 degrees
                                                       (+0.07 degrees)