# AMC-14 vs DirecTV-11



## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

What sat D11 or AMC-14 will be first become functioning in orbit ?


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

P Smith said:


> What sat D11 or AMC-14 will be first become functioning in orbit ?


If I had to pick one I'd say D11 since it's by SeaLaunch so it's 'supposed' to get to geostationary orbit quicker, unless SES wasn't to blow their fuel budget to get it there quick.


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## rocatman (Nov 28, 2003)

RAD said:


> If I had to pick one I'd say D11 since it's by SeaLaunch so it's 'supposed' to get to geostationary orbit quicker, unless SES wasn't to blow their fuel budget to get it there quick.


Of course a DirecTV subscriber would pick the DirecTV satellite but it is scheduled to be launched 3 days later. In addition, D-11 is a spotbeam satellite that historically takes significantly longer for on-orbit testing. The AMC-14 satellite does have some newer technology that may increase its test time as well as the possible interference testing to 61.5 W when it is tested at 56.5 W. I would still guess that AMC-14 will be functioning on-orbit sooner.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

rocatman said:


> Of course a DirecTV subscriber would pick the DirecTV satellite but it is scheduled to be launched 3 days later. In addition, D-11 is a spotbeam satellite that historically takes significantly longer for on-orbit testing. The AMC-14 satellite does have some newer technology that may increase its test time as well as the possible interference testing to 61.5 W when it is tested at 56.5 W. I would still guess that AMC-14 will be functioning on-orbit sooner.


So the fact that D11 is Sealaunch, which is supposed to get to geostationary orbit quicker then AMC-14's launch doesn't give D11 an edge? As for spotbeam testing isn't it possible that the CONUS beams could be made operational while they're still messing with the spots? Not saying that your guess isn't correct, we'll just have to see who's correct.

BTW, if AMC14 was SeaLaunch and D11 was ILS I would have picked AMC14.


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## rocatman (Nov 28, 2003)

RAD said:


> So the fact that D11 is Sealaunch, which is supposed to get to geostationary orbit quicker then AMC-14's launch doesn't give D11 an edge? As for spotbeam testing isn't it possible that the CONUS beams could be made operational while they're still messing with the spots? Not saying that your guess isn't correct, we'll just have to see who's correct.
> 
> BTW, if AMC14 was SeaLaunch and D11 was ILS I would have picked AMC14.


It is correct that it takes longer to remove the inclination from a satellite launched on a Proton compared to SeaLaunch but satellites also have to have their orbits circularized. If you take a look at the SeaLaunch website you can get details of what I am talking about. The one big factor that may make a difference is the mass of each satellite. D-11 has a mass of 13058 lbs while AMC-14 has a mass of 9127 lbs. I believe the larger mass will increase the time to circularize the D-11 orbit. Looking at the predicted transfer orbit numbers D-11 will have a much greater eliptical orbit than will AMC-14, ie., the perigee for D-11 is 250 kilometers versus 890 kilometers for AMC-14.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Okay.... better question....

D11 or AMC-14...

Which one makes the quicker impact to their respective customer base


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## JohnH (Apr 22, 2002)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Okay.... better question....
> 
> D11 or AMC-14...
> 
> Which one makes the quicker impact to their respective customer base


Dah, loaded question. 

One is ConUS, the other is not.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

JohnH said:


> Dah, loaded question.
> 
> One is ConUS, the other is not.




but more seriously... ultimately either one will have an impact on their respective customer bases...

Maybe not directly in the home, but they are not just "throwing" them up there for the heck of it...


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

JohnH said:


> Dah, loaded question.
> 
> One is ConUS, the other is not.


Which are you saying is what? D11 has CONUS along with Spotbeam, IIRC AMC-14 was just CONUS.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

I know I added to it...

But let's not do this in this thread... lets wait till Wednesday when both Birds are safley in the air, then we can have the "which will impact customers first" debate in an General forum thread.

this threads is for the Dish Network launch, not for us to bump heads and chests about which is which...

Good luck to AMC-14 (Because if you have issues... I am certain that D11 will be delayed a few days to double check everything.... )


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## JohnH (Apr 22, 2002)

RAD said:


> Which are you saying is what? D11 has CONUS along with Spotbeam, IIRC AMC-14 was just CONUS.


While AMC-14 has a ConUS footprint, nothing at 61.5 west can be considered truly ConUS.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Hooray ! AMC-14 beating D11 so far ! .


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## BNUMM (Dec 24, 2006)

Maybe not.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Sorry to pronounce, but AMC-14 is DEAD.


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## SParker (Apr 27, 2002)

P Smith said:


> Sorry to pronounce, but AMC-14 is DEAD.


Ugh!!! I hope DIRECTV has better luck with D11. What a blow for Dish Network..


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

Considering how the race between AMC-14 and DirecTV ended abruptly this thread is unneeded.

Condolences to Dish Network and it's employees as they handle the issue.
Best wishes to DirecTV that it's launch goes as well as the last Sea Launch.


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