...that was successfully orbited on Saturday, November 3, 2012, by a Proton rocket launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The satellite was built by ISS-Reshetnev as prime contractor. Loutch 5B, to be operated by the Russian space agency Roscosmos, will join Loutch 5A, which was launched in December 2011.

The Loutch 5B relay satellite will be positioned in geostationary orbit at 95 degrees East, and will provide video and data transfer links between the International Space Station and the ground, as well as transmitting commands to satellites in low Earth orbit throughout their service life. The Loutch 5B payload has four channels, in S- and Ku-bands. It weighed 1,165kg at launch and offers a design life of 15 years. The successful completion of this satellite confirms the solid partnership between these two long-standing partners, ISS-Reshetnev and Thales Alenia Space.

Additionally, Nathalie Smirnov has been appointed...

...Executive Vice President for the Telecommunications Business Line at Thales Alenia Space, effective November 1. She succeeds Emmanuel Grave, who has taken a well-deserved retirement after 34 years of work dedicated to the Thales group and its customers.

From 2007 until this latest appointment, Nathalie Smirnov was Senior Vice President for Telecommunications Systems and Payloads at Thales Alenia Space, encompassing large space systems for defense, civil and dual applications. Nathalie joined the Alcatel group in 1998, starting as head of the Mobile Network Engineering department (1998-1999). Later, she was appointed head of Supply Chain and Operations of the Mobile Network division (1992-2002), Vice President of the Network Switching division (2002-2004) and then Chief Operating Officer of the Mobile Solutions division (2004-2007).