Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) has announced that Telstar 14R/Estrela do Sul 2 was delivered ahead of schedule for the start of its launch campaign. The satellite, designed and built for Telesat, one of the world's leading satellite operators, arrived earlier at the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan, where it will be launched in late May aboard an ILS Proton Breeze M vehicle provided by International Launch Services (ILS).

"It is a great credit to the combined efforts of Space Systems/Loral and Telesat that Telstar 14R/ Estrela do Sul 2 was completed in less than two years' time," said Dan Goldberg, Telesat's President and CEO.

"When our newest satellite goes into service this summer, it will provide significant benefits to our current and prospective customers, including roughly double the capacity of the satellite it replaces as well as significantly improved geographic coverage and higher power."

Telstar 14R/Estrela do Sul 2 is a Ku-band satellite that will deliver services to growing markets that include Brazil, the Continental United States, the North Atlantic Ocean Region, as well as the Andean and Southern Cone region of South America. The satellite has 46 Ku-band transponders and five antenna beams with on-orbit switching capability that will allow its capacity to be reconfigured depending on market demand.

"Great teamwork, dedication and focus enabled us to deliver Telstar 14R/Estrela do Sul 2 well ahead of schedule," said John Celli, president of SS/L.

"For Telesat's customers, the satellite will bring valuable communications capability to some relatively remote parts of the world. It is heartening to know that the satellites that we design and build at SS/L can improve people's lives by contributing to better healthcare delivery and education, and much needed infrastructure when emergency services are required."

Telstar 14R/Estrela do Sul 2 will be positioned at 63 degrees West longitude, replacing Telstar 14/Estrela do Sul which was also built by SS/L. The new satellite is based on the highly reliable Space Systems/Loral 1300 platform and has 27 Ku-band transponders that are fixed and 19 that are switchable. With approximately 12-kW of end of life power, Telstar 14R is designed to deliver service for 15 years or more.