The launch took place at 2 o'clock 44 minutes Moscow time. After several minutes the rocket put the Kazsat satellite into reference orbit.
This is the second time that the presidents of Russia and Kazakhstan have been in Baikonur together. Last year they took part in celebrations on the occasion of the Cosmodrome’s 50 th anniversary.
Kazakhstan’s communications satellite, Kazsat, was produced and prepared to enter the geostationary orbit according to the Russian-Kazakhstan intergovernmental agreement that was signed in Moscow on 18 January 2005.
Developing and manufacturing the satellite, creating a ground complex to manage communications and broadcasting on Kazakhstan’s territory, training and preparing domestic personnel were executed according to a contract between the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Centre, Russian Satellite Communications Company and the Kazakhstan party.
The satellite was put into orbit mounted on a Proton-K rocket and a DM-3 booster.
The satellite will help create a communications and broadcasting system for Kazakhstan.