Ariane 5s fifth mission of 2010 orbited a dual payload of the Intelsat 17 and HYLAS 1 telecommunications satellites today, marking the 40th consecutive success for Arianespaces workhorse heavy-lift launcher.
Since the start of 2010, Ariane 5 has orbited 10 large telecommunications satellites out of the 17 total launched worldwide.
Intelsat 17 was the 51st satellite lofted by Arianespace for Intelsat, while HYLAS 1 is the first satellite deployed by Arianespace for Avanti Communications.