RESTON, Va. & HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--International Launch Services (ILS) and Asia Satellite Telecommunications Co. Ltd. (AsiaSat) announced a contract today for the launch of AsiaSat 5 satellite on an ILS Proton. The satellite is under construction by Space Systems/Loral in Palo Alto, California, and is expected to be delivered to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan early this summer. ILS and Khrunichev are implementing a mission integration schedule to support a third quarter 2009 launch.

AsiaSat 5 will replace AsiaSat 2 at the orbital location of 100.5 degrees East. The new AsiaSat 5 will offer an enhanced pan Asian C-band footprint and high-power Ku-band beams over East Asia, South Asia, and an in-orbit steerable Ku beam. The satellite is a Space Systems/Loral 1300 platform, designed for a lifespan of 15 years. The station-keeping lifetime of the satellite should be greatly improved due to the available performance of the Proton launch vehicle.

Frank McKenna, President of ILS said, "This was truly a win-win situation. Due to another customer's change in plans we have hardware and manifest availability to support AsiaSat's schedule needs. ILS is dedicated to providing our long-term customer, AsiaSat, with outstanding launch services and on-time delivery with Proton in the third quarter of this year."

AsiaSat's CEO Peter Jackson said, "With this launch opportunity with ILS, we are setting forth a strategy to launch AsiaSat 5 in keeping with our planned replacement program for AsiaSat 2. ILS Proton offers us the schedule assurance that we need to ensure continuity of service to our customers at the orbital location of 100.5 degrees East."

About ILS and Khrunichev

ILS is a world leader in providing mission and launch services for global satellite operators. ILS offers a complete array of services and support, from contract signing through mission management and on-orbit delivery. ILS has exclusive rights to market the Proton vehicle and is a U.S. company headquartered in Reston, Va., near Washington, D.C. For more information, visit http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ilslaunch.com&esheet=5902931&lan=en_US&anchor=www.ilslaunch.com&index=1.

Khrunichev, which holds the majority interest in ILS, is one of the cornerstones of the Russian space industry. Khrunichev manufactures the Proton system and is developing the Angara launch system. The Proton launches from facilities at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, and has a heritage of over 340 missions since 1965. Khrunichev includes among its branches a number of key manufacturers of launch vehicle and spacecraft components in Moscow and in other cities of the Russian Federation. For more information, visit http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.khrunichev.com&esheet=5902931&lan=en_US&anchor=www.khrunichev.com&index=2.

About AsiaSat:

AsiaSat, the leading regional satellite operator in Asia, serves over two-thirds of the world's population with its three satellites, AsiaSat 2 at 100.5ºE, AsiaSat 3S at 105.5ºE and AsiaSat 4 at 122ºE. The AsiaSat satellite system provides services to both the broadcast and telecommunications industries. Some 300 television channels are now delivered by the company's satellites, reaching over 96 million households, with more than 360 million viewers across the Asia Pacific region. Many telecommunications customers use AsiaSat for services such as public telephone networks, private VSAT networks and high speed Internet and multimedia services. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asia Satellite Telecommunications Holdings Limited, a company listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (SEHK: 1135). For more information, please visit http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.asiasat.com&esheet=5902931&lan=en_US&anchor=www.asiasat.com&index=3.

Statements in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Reform Act provides a "safe harbour" for certain forward-looking statements so long as this information is identified as forward-looking and is accompanied by meaningful cautionary statements identifying important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the information. When used in this press release, the words "estimate", "plan", "project", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "outlook", and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results as a result of certain risks and uncertainties which are more specifically set forth in AsiaSat's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended 31st December, 2007 on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to (1) risks associated with technology, including delayed launches, launch failures and in-orbit failures, (2) regulatory risks, and (3) litigation and market risks. The foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive. Furthermore, AsiaSat operates in an industry sector where securities values may be volatile and may be influenced by economic and other factors beyond AsiaSat's control.

Contacts

Media inquiries:
ILS
Karen Monaghan, +1-571-633-7549
Mobile: +1-571-282-5195
Director of Communications, International Launch Services, Reston, Va.
k.monaghan@ilslaunch.com
Visit the ILS web site at http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ilslaunch.com&esheet=5902931&lan=en_US&anchor=www.ilslaunch.com&index=4
or
Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited
Sabrina Cubbon, 852-2500-0899
Mobile: 852-9097-1210
General Manager, Marketing
scubbon@asiasat.com
or
Winnie Pang, 852-2500-0880
Manager, Corporate Affairs
wpang@asiasat.com