AVIO: Successful Flight for the Ariane VA230

European launcher Ariane 5 has successfully completed its third mission in 2016, putting the BRIsat and EchoStar XVIII satellites into orbit.
The mission left the European Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana Saturday 18th June at 18:39 local time, 23:39 in Roma, and had a duration of 42 minutes. The BRIsat and EchoStar 18 satellites were put correctly into a geostationary transfer orbit.

Giulio Ranzo, CEO of AVIO, commented “It is with great satisfaction that we can confirm today the successful outcome of the 86th mission of the Ariane 5 European launcher. A success also down to our involvement: AVIO constructs the liquid oxygen turbopump for the Vulcain cryogenic engine and the two lateral engines loaded with approximately 230 tonnes of solid propellant for this launcher. It is these two engines that give the launcher the initial thrust it needs to leave the Earth’s atmosphere. This success is the result of the combined efforts of the AVIO team in Italy, France and French Guiana. It is confirmation of Avio’s leadership in the field of space launchers and shows it is ready to take on the challenges of the international market, both as in terms of versatility and competitive costs”.

BRIsat is a banking communications satellite of Indonesian bank PT.Bank Rakyat Indonesia (Persero) Tbk, also known as BRI, the first bank in the world to acquire its own satellite. Once in orbit, BRIsat will guarantee added security for banking communications for over 10,600 branches, 237,000 e-commerce channels and about 53 million consumers located across Indonesia.
EchoStar XVIII is a powerful, multi-spot-beam satellite for communications, which joins the fleet of satellites of DISH Network L.L.C., a supplier of satellite TV services. The new satellite will enable DISH to offer its customers the guarantee of the highest levels of service.