[SatNews] Following suspension on March 31st of the launch campaign activities of the EUTELSAT 3B satellite, Sea Launch has now announced that its prime contractor, Energia Logistics, Ltd., will, this week, restart testing in preparation for the rollout of the Payload Unit and its integration with the Zenit-3SL launch vehicle before departing to the launch site in mid-May.

Artistic rendition of the EUTELSAT-3B satellite.

The launch of the EUTELSAT 3B satellite is now scheduled for May 26th at 14:10 Pacific Daylight Time (21:10 UTC, 23:10 CEST) at the opening of a 54-minute launch window.
Based on Airbus Defence and Space' Eurostar E3000 platform, the EUTELSAT 3B satellite has been designed to operate three commercial payloads in the C-, Ku- and Ka-bands. This tri-band configuration will deliver exceptional levels of in-orbit flexibility and coverage from Eutelsat’s expanding 3 degrees East neighborhood.

The satellite will enable Eutelsat to diversify its commercial response to Internet Service Providers, telcos, government agencies and broadcasters operating in Latin America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. EUTELSAT 3B has a designed in-orbit lifetime exceeding 15 years.

For further information, please visit the Sea Launch infosite at http://www.sea-launch.com/