April 22, 2021
Categories: Russia

The Soyuz-2.1b launch vehicle with the Fregat upper stage and 36 OneWeb communications satellites was rolled out from the Assembly and Test Facility. The launch vehicle was installed on the launch pad of the Vostochny Сosmodrome, the launch is scheduled for Monday, April 25, at 22:14 UTC (April 26, at 01:14 Moscow time).

Pre-launch activities are carried out under the contracts of Glavkosmos (a subsidiary of the State Space Corporation Roscosmos) with the European launch services provider Arianespace, which provides and operates the launch of OneWeb spacecraft with the use of the Soyuz launch vehicle, and the Russian-French company Starsem. The work with the foreign customers is carried out by the representatives of other Roscosmos enterprises: Progress Space Rocket Center, Lavochkin Association, and TsENKI.

Now, the specialists at the spaceport are performing the final technical operations. The pre-launch tests of Soyuz-2.1b systems are being conducted, and the interfaces between the on-board instruments and ground equipment are being checked. This launch will be the third fully commercial launch of spacecraft from Vostochny. The previous two launches were also for the OneWeb mission.

Now, the fleet of the OneWeb satellites in the low Earth orbit amounts to 146 spacecraft, and hundreds more are to be launched. The upcoming launch should bring the number of OneWeb spacecraft in orbit to 182. OneWeb low Earth orbit satellites are designed to provide consumers on the ground with high-speed Internet.

More from this category:
May 11, 2021

On days off from working to expand the Russian habitat at the International Space Station, the cosmonauts will do their usual job – implement the…

full story
October 12, 2020

The launch of Progress MS-16 cargo vehicle initially planned for December 11 will be delayed, – as Roscosmos press-office reports. “It was decides to shift…

full story
May 19, 2021

Roscosmos cosmonaut corps cosmonauts undergo special training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center to orientate on the Earth from the International Space Station using key…

full story
January 26, 2015

From January 19 up to February 9, 2015 GCTC is conducting winter survival trainings for the following crews: – ISS-48/49 (Anatoliy Ivanishin, Roscosmos, Takuya Onishi,…

full story
December 12, 2014

Baikonur specialists go on preparing Proton-M booster with Briz-M upper stage and Yamal-401 space device for the launch. On December 11 in accordance with the…

full story
September 2, 2013

The exact date  of new multipurpose laboratory “Nauka”module  launch to the ISS is finaly announced. “October this year according to RSC Energia plans the module…

full story
April 9, 2014

Today, on Wednesday, April 9, 2014 Progress M-23M cargo vehicle will be launched to the ISS by Soyuz booster from Baikonur spaceport, – Mission Control…

full story
February 3, 2014

Progress M-20M cargo vehicle will be undocked from the ISS on Monday evening and will perform 8 controlled days flight during which “the Curve” scientific…

full story