Proton booster poised to launch Russian communications satellite

A Russian communications satellite designed for national users is set for liftoff from Kazakhstan on Tuesday aboard a Proton rocket. The three-stage Proton rocket and a Breeze M upper stage will loft the Express AM6 communications satellite into orbit thousands of miles above Earth. Liftoff is scheduled for 1509:32 GMT (11:09:32 a.m. EDT) Tuesday from launch complex 81 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The launch is set for 9:09 p.m. local time at Baikonur. The Proton rocket's six RD-276 first stage main engines will power the 191-foot-tall rocket away from the launch pad, increasing to 2.5 million pounds of thrust as the booster reaches the upper atmosphere. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Oct 21)