Second Ku/Ka-band Satellite for Echostar Ready for Launch

SES AMERICOM's AMC-16 satellite has been delivered to Cape Canaveral to prepare it for its scheduled ATLAS V launch on December 16, 2004. The hybrid Ku-band/Ka-band satellite will support advanced video and broadband services for EchoStar Communications Corp.



The spacecraft was built by Lockheed Martin and is being launched by International Launch Services (ILS). AMC-16 will feature the second operating Ka-band payload in the SES AMERICOM fleet. It carries twelve 125 MHz Ka-band spot beams, along with twenty-four 36 MHz, 140 watt Ku-band transponders. AMC-15, was launched by ILS in October on a Proton launch vehicle from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and is currently undergoing in-orbit testing. The satellites have been optimized to provide Direct-to-Home video and broadband services into a single dish. http://www.ses-americom.com