AsiaSat 8 aboard a
SpaceX Falcon 9
launch vehicle
successfully lifted
off from the Cape
Canaveral Air Force
Station in Florida,
U.S.A. at Hong Kong
Time 4:00 p.m. (4:00
a.m. EDT or Cape
Canaveral local
time) on the 5th of
August.
The spacecraft
successfully
separated from the
launch vehicle 32
minutes after
liftoff. AsiaSat has
acquired the first
signals from the
satellite in Hong
Kong 54 minutes
after launch. Over
the next few days,
AsiaSat 8 will move
into the
geostationary orbit,
some 36,000 km above
the Equator.
“We are excited that
the AsiaSat 8 launch
has achieved this
significant
milestone. This is
our first launch
with SpaceX, we
would like to thank
them for their
excellent work and
effort in making
today’s launch a
success. In the
coming weeks, we
will work closely
with Space
Systems/Loral, our
long-term partner,
on the post-launch
maneuvers and
in-orbit testing of
AsiaSat 8,” said
William Wade,
President and Chief
Executive Officer of
AsiaSat.
“The addition of
AsiaSat 8 to our
existing fleet of
four in-orbit
satellites will
expand our fleet
capacity and enable
us to serve a wider
range of customers
for advanced
satellite services,
from DTH, data
broadcasting to
broadband services.”
AsiaSat 8 is a Space
Systems/Loral 1300
series satellite,
and has a design
life of 15 years.
With 24 Ku-band
transponders and a
Ka-band payload,
AsiaSat 8 will
co-locate with
AsiaSat 7, where
AsiaSat has
established networks
for service since
1990. AsiaSat 8’s
powerful Ku-band
beams cover China,
India, the Middle
East and South East
Asia, with
inter-beam switching
capability to
provide flexibility
to address market
requirements.
