OneWeb satellite launch could be postponed after Soyuz emergency

The launch of the first test satellites of the UK's OneWeb constellation into orbit from the Kourou spaceport using the Soyuz-ST carrier rocket may be postponed due to an emergency situation during the launch of Egyptian Egyptsat-A satellite on board a Soyuz-2.1b rocket on Thursday, a Russian space industry source told Sputnik.

The long-awaited OneWeb satellite launch has been recently rescheduled for February 27.

"Both carrier rockets use the same engine on their third stages, therefore, an investigation [into Soyuz 2.1b emergency] will be required, which means that the launch on February 27 from the Kourou space center may be postponed," the source said.

Russian space industry sources earlier told Sputnik that the third stage of the Soyuz rocket failed to bring the first stage carrying the Egyptian satellite to a target orbit, but the Fregat booster was able to use reserve fuel to compensate for the orbiting error.

Russia's State Space Corporation Roscosmos ultimately confirmed that the EgyptSat-A earth observation satellite had been delivered to its designated orbit and is operating in a regular regime.

Source: Sputnik News