Sea Launch suffered a catastrophic failure 14 seconds after ignition and as result terminated rocket thrust. The Zenit-3SL rocket with the IS-27 spacecraft crashed into the Pacific Ocean approximately 4 km from the Odyssey Launch Platform.
Intelsat 27 was to operate from 304.5º East, an orbital location currently occupied by Intelsat 805 and Galaxy 11. The satellite is designed to serve customers in North America, South America, the North Atlantic and Europe. The Boeing satellite carried 20 C-band transponders for coverage over the Americas and Europe, and 20 Ku-band transponders with mobility beams spanning the north Atlantic, Mexico and Brazil.
“We are clearly disappointed with the outcome of the launch. The cause of the failure is unknown, but we will work closely with our launch and manufacturing partners to determine the necessary next steps,” said Intelsat CEO David McGlade.
In January 2007, Sea Launch suffered a failed launch resulting in total loss of the NSS-8 satellite along with substantial damage to its Odyssey Launch platform.
