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Launch of Proton rocket carrying US satellite postponed till December

The reasons for the postponement have not been announced yet

MOSCOW, November 21. /TASS/. The launch of the Russian Proton-M carrier rocket due to deliver the US EchoStar-21 satellite into orbit, has been rescheduled from November to December, International Launch Services, which operates Proton international launches, announced on its official website.

"The new launch date is December 2016," the website says.

The reasons for the postponement have not yet been announced.

As reported earlier, Russia’s space corporation Roscosmos had rescheduled the launch from October 10 to November 23. It was initially scheduled for late June, then postponed to August 29 and then to October 10.

The EchoStar-21 satellite (previously known as EchoStar T2 and TerreStar 2), made by Space Systems/Loral, is designed for providing communication services in Europe.

Proton’s previous launch was conducted on the morning of June 9, the rocket placed the Intelsat 31 satellite into orbit. 

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