Posted: Fri, Sep 8, 2006, 8:32 AM ET (1232 GMT)
Commercial launch service providers Arianespace and Sea Launch each announced this week that they had won launch contracts from European customers. Eutelsat announced Tuesday that it has awarded contracts for the launches of two satellites to Sea Launch. Eutelsat said it will later decide which two of four satellites currently planned for launch in 2008 or 2009 — W2A, W2M, W7, and Hot Bird 9 — will be launched by Sea Launch's Zenit 3SL, with the other two to be launched by Arianespace under an existing agreement. On Wednesday Arianespace announced that it had won a deal to launch the two SATCOMBw satellites for the German military; those spacecraft, to be built by EADS Astrium under a recently-awarded contract, will be launched in the first and second quarters of 2008.

Related Links:

•  Eutelsat press release
•  Arianespace press release