• Ariane 5’s first flight of 2016 from Kourou puts Intelsat telecommunications into orbit
• 70th successful flight in a row underlines maturity of Europe’s Ariane 5 launcher

Ariane 5 has been flawlessly launched from Kourou, French Guiana, for the 70th consecutive time, building on the European launcher’s track record. During this latest mission, Ariane 5 placed a telecommunications satellite weighing around 6.5 tonnes in transfer orbit.

“This first successful flight in 2016 underlines again the extraordinary reliability of Europe’s Ariane 5 launcher, one of the world’s largest and most complex launch systems. As its main industrial partner, we are proud to form part of this success story,” said François Auque, Head of Space Systems.

Airbus Defence and Space, a 50% shareholder in Airbus Safran Launchers, is the main industrial partner in the Ariane 5 programme. The industrial network brings together more than 550 companies in 12 European countries. Drawing on the expertise the company has acquired and the investments it has made over more than 10 years, Ariane 5 has become the most reliable commercial launcher on the global market and has increased its geostationary orbit payload capacity by almost two tonnes. Representing cutting-edge European expertise, the Ariane 5 launcher has been specially designed to inject heavy payloads into orbit.

Press release Airbus Group