Astrium, prime contractor for the Ariane 5 ECA launcher and the BADR-6 satellite, has once again achieved a completely successful mission, placing this telecommunications satellite built for Arabsat into orbit during the night of 7 July.
François Auque, CEO of Astrium, has expressed his satisfaction with "this 26th success on the run, fresh proof of the excellence of design and technical and operational maturity of the Ariane 5 ECA launcher."
"Astrium delivers Arianespace customers a reliable, quality service for their satellites. This is also the guarantee for Europe of the access to space it requires for implementation of its space policy”, he added.
Astrium, a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS, is dedicated to providing civil and defence space systems and services. In 2007, Astrium had a turnover of €3.5 billion and 12,000 employees in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands. Its three main areas of activity are Astrium Space Transportation for launchers and orbital infrastructure, Astrium Satellites for spacecraft and ground segment and its wholly owned subsidiary Astrium Services for the development and delivery of satellite services.
EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2007, EADS generated revenues of €39.1 billion and employed a workforce of more than 116,000.
Media contacts:
Matthieu Duvelleroy (Astrium FR)Tel.: +33(0) 1 77 75 80 32
Jeremy Close (Astrium UK) Tel.: +44 (0)1 438 77 3872
Mathias Pikelj (Astrium GER) Tel.: +49 (0) 162 29 49 666
Francisco Lechón (Astrium SP) Tel.: +34 (0) 91 586 37 41
http://www.astrium.eads.net
