Hughes Space and Communications and Japan's Rocket Systems signed a contract on 25 November for ten launches of the up-rated H2A booster, (Flight International, 17-23 July, P17). The contract also includes an undisclosed number of launch options.
The ten launches will begin in 2000 and will continue for about five years, carrying the Hughes HS-601 and the new HS-702 satellites, which have a launch weight of 3,000kg to 5,000kg. Space Systems/Loral is finalising a $370 million launch deal for five H2A flights, starting in 2000.
The H2A will replicate the current H2 model's 2,000kg-to-geostationary-orbit (GEO) capability, but will be cheaper to produce. The H2 has been successfully flown four times since 1994, and is due for five more flights to 2000, including the launch of the European Space Agency's Artemis satellite.
The H2A will launch five national payloads, starting with the Hope X unmanned spaceplane in 2000, and may be followed by more ambitious upgrades: the H2A with a new piggyback stage to place 3,000kg into GEO; and a vehicle with two liquid piggyback stages to increase performance to 4,000kg to GEO.
Source: Flight International