(to Western Hemisphere,Eastern Hemisphere,Footprints by Dish Size)
(e. hemi. list)

Vanessa O'Connor - Press Office / Service Presse Tel: 33 1 53 98 47 57 / 38 88 Fax: 33 1 53 98 37 88 e-mail: voconnor@eutelsat.fr - llegros@eutelsat.fr PR/1 8/98 EUTELSAT's W2 SATELLITE SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED! HOT BIRD™ 5 launch set for October 9 Paris, October 5, 1998: W2, the first in a new generation of EUTELSAT telecommunications, television and multimedia satellites was successfully launched on October 5 at 10.51 p.m. GMT by Ariane IV (V111) from French Guiana. The new satellite is scheduled to go into service in mid-November at 16 degrees East in order to provide services for Europe, Africa and the Middle East. W2 is also the first EUTELSAT satellite to broadcast commercial services to the southern hemisphere. After separation from the Ariane launcher, control of W2 was assumed by the DLR in Oberpfaffenhofen (Germany). A number of critical manoeuvres will be carried out over the next few hours including first sun acquisition and partial deployment of the solar arrays. Manoeuvres to be conducted over the next five days include three firings of the apogee motor, total deployment of the solar arrays, deployment of the East and West reflectors and final earth acquisition. W2's 24 transponders will replace the 16 provided by EUTELSAT II-F3 at 16 degrees East and will be used for a range of services which include television broadcasts, business networks, fast Internet access and digital television distribution links. The satellite, delivered by Alcatel Space Industries, will provide two coverage zones - a fixed Widebeam covering Europe, North Africa and the Middle East and a Steerable Beam which will be positioned over the Indian Ocean for broadcasting digital television to Mauritius and Reunion Island. Following hard on the heels of W2 is HOT BIRD™ 5 which is due for lift-off on October 9 on board an Atlas IIA (AC-134) supplied by ILS. The launch window opens at 9.55 p.m. GMT and closes at 11.05 p.m. GMT. Live television coverage of the HOT BIRD™ 5 launch will be carried by the HOT BIRD™ channel in the EUTELSAT Digital Platform (downlink frequency 12.673 GHz, vertical polarization). With the successful launch of W2, EUTELSAT’s fleet now comprises 12 satellites. The satellites broadcast nearly 400 digital and analogue television channels and deliver multimedia services, business networks, telephony and the EUTELTRACS messaging and positioning service for mobiles. European Telecommunications Satellite Organization - Organisation Européenne de Télécommunications par Satellite 70, rue Balard 75502 Paris cedex 15 - France.