12.08.2008

Crane delays satellite launch

The launch of the Malaysian MEASAT 3A satellite has been pushed back indefinitely while its manufacturer Orbital Sciences assesses the damage done after it was struck by a crane on Saturday at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.

The launch company, Land Launch, was preparing the communications satellite for an August 21 liftoff on a Zenit-3SLB rocket. The accident occurred as the crane operator was moving a piece of ground equipment after the spacecraft was mated with the rocket's upper stage.

MEASAT (Malaysia East Asia Satellite) and Orbital engineers are at the site assessing the damage, which may require the spacecraft to be returned to Orbital's satellite manufacturing facility in Dulles, Virginia for repair. The assessment is expected to take several weeks.