[SatNews] BAIKONUR COSMODROME, Kazakhstan, May 16, 2015– Khrunichev and International Launch Services (ILS) regret to announce an anomaly during today's Proton mission with the Centenario satellite. The satellite was built for Mexican government’s Ministry of Communications and Transportation, the Secretaria de Comunicaciones y Transportes (SCT) by Boeing Satellite Systems International.
The Proton Breeze M rocket lifted off at 11:47 local time from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, carrying the Centenario satellite. Preliminary flight information indicates that the anomaly occurred during the operation of the third stage, approximately 490 seconds after liftoff.
A Russian State Commission has begun the process of determining the reasons for the anomaly. ILS will release details when data becomes available. In parallel with the State Commission, ILS will form its own Failure Review Oversight Board (FROB). The FROB will review the commission’s final report and corrective action plan, in accord with U.S. and Russian government export control regulations.
ILS remains committed to providing reliable, timely launch services for all its customers. To this end, ILS will work diligently with its partner Khrunichev to return Proton to flight as soon as possible.
International Launch Services (ILS) launched their Russian Proton-M rocket on Saturday, carrying the MexSat-1 (Centenario) communications satellite on what was supposed to be a multi-hour flight to its transfer orbit. Launch from Pad 39 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan was nominal, before the ascent suffered a third stage failure resulting in the loss of the mission.
The Proton booster that launched the Boeing-built satellite has a heritage of over 400 launches since 1965 and is built by Khrunichev Research and State Production Center, a primary player in the global space industry and the majority owner of ILS.
The Proton’s first stage consists of a central tank containing the oxidizer surrounded by six outboard fuel tanks. Each fuel tank also carries one of the six RD-276 engines that provide first stage power. Total first stage vacuum-rated level thrust is 11.0 MN (2,500,000 lbf).
The second stage is powered by three RD-0210 engines plus one RD-0211 engine and develops a vacuum thrust of 2.4 MN (540,000 lbf).
Powered by one RD-0213 engine, the third stage develops thrust of 583 kN (131,000 lbf), and a four-nozzle vernier engine that produces thrust of 31 kN (7,000 lbf). This is the stage that appears to have suffered the problem during Saturday’s launch.
The mission was to utilize a 5-burn profile, following the ascent using the first three stages to place the orbital unit, the Breeze M upper stage and the Centenario satellite, into a sub-orbital trajectory.
From this point in the mission, the Breeze M was to perform planned mission maneuvers to advance the orbital unit first to a circular parking orbit, then to an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally to a geosynchronous transfer orbit.
