ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Aug. 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- EchoStar Corporation
(NASDAQ: SATS) announced today that, during its move to a new
orbital location last week, EchoStar III experienced an anomaly of
unknown origin that has caused communications with the satellite to
be interrupted and intermittent.
EchoStar III is a Ku-band BSS satellite that provided coverage
over the U.S. The satellite, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, was
launched in 1997 and has significantly exceeded its 15 year design
life. It has been operating in an inclined orbit for more than
three years.
"EchoStar has received FCC authority for its current flight
configuration and we are working in cooperation with the satellite
manufacturer to re-establish a reliable link in order to recover
and retire the spacecraft," said Derek de
Bastos, chief technology officer for EchoStar Satellite
Services L.L.C. "In spite of the anomaly, we believe that the
current EchoStar III orbit does not present a significant risk to
the operating satellites in the geostationary arc."
EchoStar III is owned by EchoStar and is a fully depreciated,
non-revenue generating asset.
About EchoStar Satellite Services
EchoStar Satellite Services L.L.C., a subsidiary of EchoStar
Corp., is a world-class satellite operator with a fleet of 26
owned, leased and managed satellites. EchoStar Satellite
Services delivers reliable and innovative solutions to the
satellite industry, providing satellite communications
infrastructure and services to media and broadcast organizations,
pay-TV operators, enterprise customers and U.S. Government and
military service providers. For more information, visit
echostarsatelliteservices.com.
About EchoStar
EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is
a premier global provider of satellite communication solutions.
Headquartered in Englewood, Colo.,
and conducting business around the globe, EchoStar is a pioneer in
secure communications technologies through its Hughes Network
Systems and EchoStar Satellite Services business segments.
For more information, visit echostar.com. Follow @EchoStar on
Twitter.
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SOURCE EchoStar Corporation