Intelsat S.A. has informed all that International Launch Services (ILS) has successfully launched the Intelsat 16 satellite (IS-16). The Proton Breeze M vehicle lifted off from Kazahkstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome at 7:39 p.m. ET on February 11th, followed by spacecraft separation and signal acquisition over nine hours later at approximately 5:14 a.m. ET this morning.

The satellite, built by Orbital Sciences Corporation using their Star 2.4 platform, will provide expansion capacity for SKY Mexico’s direct-to-home (DTH) services, including HD programming at the 58 degrees West orbital slot. In addition, IS-16 will be available to provide backup capacity for SKY Brazil. IS-16 is the first Intelsat launch of 2010, and the third in an 11-satellite investment campaign, the largest in Intelsat’s history. The investment program is expected to provide enhanced high-powered capacity to Intelsat’s global fleet. Intelsat’s next launch is expected to be the Intelsat New Dawn satellite, which will deliver new capacity for voice, wireless backhaul, Internet and media applications for customers serving Africa. The launch of the Intelsat 16 satellite marks the 1st ILS Proton launch of the year and the 57th commercial launch overall for ILS. It is the second Proton launch in just over two weeks, with the launch of a Federal mission on January 28, 2010. The Proton Breeze M vehicle is built by Khrunichev Space Center of Moscow, also a majority owner of ILS. Proton has a heritage of more than 350 missions since its maiden flight in 1965.