Cannes, September 9, 2009 – Thales Alenia Space and Indosat announced today that the Launch Early Operation Phase (LEOP) has been successfully completed and the Palapa-D communications satellite is now in the nominal geostationary orbit (GEO). The solar panels and antennas have been deployed, and the payload in-orbit testing (IOT) phase is ready to start.

More info: http://www.thalesgroup.com/Press_Releases/space_090909_Palapa-D_communications_satellite_now_in_geostationary_orbit/

The launch took place at the Xi Chang Satellite Launch Center, in Sichuan Province on August 31-st, but failed to place the spacecraft in the required orbit – due to an issue with the CZ-3B’s third stage.

More info: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2009/08/chang-zheng-3b-suffers-third-stage-problem-palapa-d/