[SatNews] Boeing [NYSE: BA] has received the first on-orbit signals from Intelsat 22, the first of a series...

...of 702MP (medium power) satellites it is delivering for Intelsat. The signals indicate that Intelsat 22 is healthy and ready to begin orbit raising maneuvers to geostationary orbit followed by operational testing. Intelsat 22 launched on an International Launch Services Proton M / Breeze M vehicle, manufactured by Khrunichev, at 8:10 a.m. Eastern time on March 25th from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Controllers at Boeing's Mission Control Center in El Segundo received initial contact from the spacecraft 15 hours and 40 minutes later and confirmed it is functioning normally.

Intelsat 22 is Boeing's first 702MP spacecraft, which represents the company’s expansion into the medium-sized satellite market. An evolution of Boeing's 702 satellite, the 702MP uses proven technology and a modular design approach to enable faster delivery at a lower cost. Intelsat 22 also carries a government-hosted payload. Following a sequence of orbital maneuvers and on-orbit tests, Intelsat 22 will be placed into geosynchronous Earth orbit, operating in a 72 degrees east orbital slot over the Indian Ocean. Other 702MP satellites currently under construction by Boeing for Intelsat are Intelsat 21, scheduled to launch in the third quarter of this year, and Intelsat 27, scheduled to be completed in 2012 for launch in the first quarter of 2013. Intelsat 27 will carry a UHF hosted payload and offer 20 25-KHz UHF channels capable of serving the U.S. government and other Intelsat clients around the world.