A Russian Proton-M launch vehicle carrying the Dutch SES-5 telecoms satellite lifted off on Monday from the Baikonur Space Center in Kazakhstan after a series of delays, Russia’s Federal Space Agency Roscosmos said.

“The launch occurred at the calculated time. The separation of the spacecraft from the Briz-M upper-stage rocket is expected at 07:50 a.m. Moscow time [03:50 GMT] on July 10,” Roscosmos’s spokesperson said.

The launch that was initially scheduled for June 19, has been postponed after the fault in the steering gear was detected during a check as part of the preparation for the launch.

The SES-5, built by U.S. company Space Systems/Loral for the Dutch operator SES World Skies, was designed to provide various satellite services to customers in Africa, Middle East and Europe. The satellite has a life span of 15 years.

© RIA Novosti.

Proton Carrier Rocket