OREANDA-NEWS. The rocket Proton-M with the Russian communication satellites Express-80 and Express-103 was launched on July 31 from the 200th site of the Baikonur Cosmodrome (Kazakhstan).

Proton-M was launched at 00:25 Moscow time (22:25 UTC). The separation of the apparatus Express-80 from the upper stage and the launching of the satellite into the target orbit should take place at 18:24 Moscow time; Express-103 should be launched into the target orbit at 18:41 Moscow time.

This was the only launch of Proton in 2020.

The satellites Express-80 and Express-103 were built by order of the federal state unitary enterprise Satellite Communication on the basis of the unified platform of Express-1000N developed by JSC Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems. The European company Thales Alenia Space is traditionally the partner of the enterprise in payload of new satellites.

The sputniks are designed to provide fixed and mobile communication, digital television and radio broadcasting, high-speed Internet, as well as data transmission in Russia and the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States.