| Intelsat VA F-14 | |
| Mission Type: | Communication |
| Operator: | Intelsat |
| Cospar Id: | 1986-F05 |
| Mission Duration: | 7 years (planned) |
| Spacecraft Bus: | Intelsat VA |
| Manufacturer: | Ford Aerospace |
| Bol Mass: | 1098 kg [1] |
| Launch Mass: | 1981 kg |
| Power: | 1800 watts |
| Dimensions: | 1.66 x 2.1 x 1.77 metres |
| Launch Date: | 31 May 1986, 00:53:03 UTC [2] |
| Launch Rocket: | Ariane 2 V18 |
| Launch Site: | Kourou, ELA-1 |
| Launch Contractor: | Aérospatiale |
| Entered Service: | Launch failure |
| Orbit Epoch: | Planned |
| Orbit Reference: | Geocentric orbit |
| Orbit Regime: | Geostationary orbit |
| Apsis: | gee |
| Trans Band: | 26 C-band 6 Ku-band |
| Programme: | Intelsat V |
| Previous Mission: | Intelsat VA F-13 |
| Next Mission: | Intelsat VA F-15 |
Intelsat VA F-14, was a communications satellite operated by Intelsat. Launched in 1986, it was the fourteenth of fifteen Intelsat V satellites to be launched. The Intelsat V series was constructed by Ford Aerospace, based on the Intelsat VA satellite bus. Intelsat VA F-14 was part of an advanced series of satellites designed to provide greater telecommunications capacity for Intelsat's global network.
The satellite was box-shaped, measuring 1.66 by 2.1 by 1.77 metres; solar arrays spanned 15.9 metres tip to tip. The arrays, supplemented by nickel-hydrogen batteries during eclipse, provided 1800 watts of power at mission onset, approximately 1280 watts at the end of its seven-year design life. The payload housed 26 C-band and 6 Ku-band transponders. It could accommodate 15,000 two-way voice circuits and two TV channels simultaneously. It also provided maritime communications for ships at sea.[3]
The satellite was successfully launched into space on 31 May 1986, at 00:53:03 UTC, by means of an Ariane 2 vehicle from the Centre Spatial Guyanais, Kourou, French Guiana. It had a launch mass of 1981 kg.[4] During the Ariane 2 maiden flight, the third stage had a partial ignition followed by another ignition above nominal pressure which led to the engine's failure and the destruction of the launcher.
Because the upper stage of the Ariane 2 was shared with the other Ariane rockets, all flights were suspended until 16 September 1987. As a result of an investigation into the ignition irregularities, it was decided that installing more powerful igniters would sufficiently rectify the issue.[5]