Attachment STA Request

This document pretains to SAT-STA-20110929-00191 for Special Temporal Authority on a Satellite Space Stations filing.

IBFS_SATSTA2011092900191_919139

Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of Application of ) ) SES AMERICOM, INC. ) File No. SAT-STA-___________ ) Call Sign S2156 For Special Temporary Authority to ) Relocate AMC-5 to 80.9º W.L. ) APPLICATION OF SES AMERICOM, INC. SES Americom, Inc. (doing business as “SES”) hereby respectfully requests special temporary authority (“STA”) for a period of sixty days beginning on October 31, 2011 to relocate the AMC-5 Ku-band fixed-satellite space station to 80.9° W.L. and maintain it there with an east-west stationkeeping tolerance of +/- 0.1 degrees. Specifically, SES seeks authority to perform Telemetry, Tracking and Control (“TT&C”) in order to relocate AMC-5 from 79.10º W.L. to 80.9° W.L. and authority to operate both the TT&C and Ku-band communications payloads on AMC-5 after it has arrived at 80.9° W.L. Grant of the requested authority will serve the public interest by allowing SES to redeploy AMC-5 to a location where it can introduce new service in response to customer demand. SES is preparing to file an application to reassign AMC-5 to 80.9º W.L. for operations in accordance with the International Telecommunication Union (“ITU”) filings of the Argentine Administration. Pending submission of and action on the modification, SES seeks STA to allow it to commence relocation of AMC-5 to 80.9º W.L.

AMC-5 is a Ku-band only spacecraft launched in 1998 that is currently authorized to operate at 79.10º W.L. with an east-west stationkeeping tolerance of +/- 0.1 degrees.1 SES also operates the AMC-2 C/Ku-band hybrid spacecraft at the nominal 79º W.L. orbital location.2 SES has also proposed to relocate AMC-2 to the nominal 5º E.L. orbital location and to operate it there pursuant to Swedish licensing authority.3 In preparation for the proposed relocation, SES is in the process of transitioning all customer traffic off of AMC-2.4 AMC-5 currently serves only as an in-orbit spare for the Ku-band capacity of AMC-2. SES now has an opportunity to redeploy AMC-5 to provide service from a new orbital location. Specifically, SES has entered into an agreement with Empresa Argentina de Soluciones Satelitales S.A. (“AR-SAT”), which holds an authorization from the Argentine Government to operate a satellite at the nominal 81º W.L. orbital location.5 That agreement 1 See File No. SAT-MOD-20110714-00126, grant-stamped Sept. 14, 2011 (“September Modification Grant”). 2 See File No. SAT-MOD-20100324-00056, grant-stamped June 21, 2010. 3 See File No. SAT-T/C-20110527-00100 (“AMC-2 5º E.L. Application”). 4 See id., Narrative at 3. Subject to the receipt of Commission authority, SES proposes to return AMC-2 to the nominal 79º W.L. orbital location following the successful launch and commencement of operations of the SES-5 satellite at 5º E.L. See Letter of Karis A. Hastings, Counsel for SES Americom, Inc., to Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, File No. SAT-T/C-20110527-00100, dated Aug. 19, 2011 at 4-5. 5 Evidence of AR-SAT’s authority is already on file with the Commission. See PanAmSat Licensee Corp., File No. SAT-STA-20100402-00063 (“Intelsat 3R STA”) at Attachment 2. See also Letter from the Argentine Ministry of Communications to Joslyn R. Read of SES dated Sept. 21, 2011, attached hereto as Annex 1 (confirming that the AR-SAT authorization remains in full force and effect). 2

provides for operation of AMC-5 at 80.9º W.L. pursuant to the ITU filings of the Argentine Administration.6 Grant of the requested authority to relocate AMC-5 will serve the public interest and is consistent with Commission precedent. The Commission has repeatedly observed that its policy is to allow “satellite operators to rearrange satellites in their fleet to reflect business and customer considerations where no public interest factors are adversely affected.”7 As the International Bureau has explained: the Commission attempts, when possible, to leave spacecraft design decisions to the space station licensee because the licensee is in a better position to determine how to tailor its system to meet the particular needs of its customers. Consequently the Commission will generally grant a licensee’s request to modify its system, provided there are no compelling countervailing public interest considerations.8 Here, the proposed relocation will allow SES to make efficient use of AMC-5, a spacecraft which is not currently providing service, in order to respond to customer demand for capacity at a new orbital location. Because AMC-5 is now serving as an in-orbit spare, the 6 See Letter from N. Pablo Tognetti of AR-SAT to Joslyn R. Read of SES dated Sept. 20, 2011, attached hereto as Annex 2 (confirming that AR-SAT is authorized to operate a satellite at 80.9º W.L. and has agreed to permit operation of AMC-5 at that location). 7 SES Americom, Inc., Order and Authorization, DA 06-757 (IB rel. Apr. 7, 2006) at 4, ¶ 8, citing Amendment of the Commission’s Space Station Licensing Rules and Policies, Second Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd 12507, 12509, ¶ 7 (2003). 8 AMSC Subsidiary Corp., Order and Authorization, DA 98-493, 13 FCC Rcd 12316 (IB 1998) at 12318, ¶ 8 (footnote omitted). Although AMSC never implement the relocation authorized in this case, the Commission has repeatedly reaffirmed its policy of allowing licensees to change their fleet configurations to accommodate customer requirements. See, e.g., Space Station Licensing Rules and Policies, First Reconsideration Order and Fifth Report and Order, FCC 04-147, 19 FCC Rcd 12637, 12653, ¶ 39 (“we generally permit licensees to modify their systems to adapt to changing business and customer needs,” citing AMSC Subsidiary Corp. and other cases). 3

relocation of the satellite will not have any impact on service at the nominal 79º W.L. orbital location. The Commission has previously authorized other U.S.-licensed satellites to operate at the nominal 81º W.L. orbital location pursuant to the Argentine Administration’s ITU filings.9 Relocation of AMC-5 to 80.9º W.L. +/- 0.1 degrees will not adversely affect other operators. The proposed stationkeeping volume does not overlap with that of any other spacecraft.10 SES will operate only the TT&C frequencies of AMC-5 during the drift.11 There are no satellites located in the proposed drift path at present, so coordination of the TT&C transmissions during the drift will not be required. At the nominal 81º W.L. orbital location, SES proposes to operate AMC-5 in conformance with Argentina’s coordination agreements regarding that location. The adjacent operational Ku-band satellites on either side of the 81° W.L. position are both licensed to SES (AMC-2 at 79W.L. and AMC-9 at 83W.L.), facilitating any necessary coordination. SES seeks continued waiver of Section 25.210(j) of the Commission’s rules in connection with the instant STA request.12 That rule specifies that geostationary space stations “must be maintained within 0.05º of their assigned orbital longitude in the east/west direction, 9 See Intelsat 3R STA, grant-stamped Aug. 3, 2010 (authorizing operation of Intelsat 3R at 81.0° W.L. for a period of 180 days pursuant to Argentine ITU filings); PanAmSat Licensee Corp., SAT-STA-20070308-00044, grant-stamped Apr. 24, 2007 (authorizing operation of Galaxy 17 spacecraft at 81.0° W.L. for a period of 21 days). 10 The satellite previously positioned at 81° W.L., Intelsat 3R, has been deorbited. See Letter of Susan H. Crandall, Assistant General Counsel, Intelsat Corporation, to Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, dated August 24, 2011 (notifying the Commission that pursuant to authority granted in File No. SAT-STA-20110503-00083, Intelsat completed end-of-life maneuvers for Intelsat 3R on August 17, 2011). 11 The AMC-5 TT&C frequencies are as follows: Command: 14001 (vertical polarization; uplink) Telemetry: 11701 and 11702 (horizontal polarization; downlink). 12 See September Modification Grant, Attachment to Grant at ¶ 1. 4

unless specifically authorized by the Commission to operate with a different longitudinal tolerance.”13 Grant of a waiver to permit an expanded stationkeeping tolerance of +/- 0.1 degrees will result in fuel saving that will prolong the AMC-5 spacecraft’s life. Furthermore, there will be no adverse effect on other operators. At 80.9º W.L., just as at 79.10° W.L., there is no overlap of the proposed stationkeeping volume with that of any other satellite. There will likewise be no material effect on the interference environment, and SES will be able to manage the coordination internally because it operates the Ku-band satellites on either side of 80.9º W.L. SES hereby certifies that no party to this application is subject to a denial of federal benefits pursuant to Section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, 21 U.S.C. § 862. SES waives any claim to the use of any particular frequency or of the electromagnetic spectrum as against the regulatory power of the United States because of the previous use of the same, whether by license or otherwise, and requests an authorization in accordance with this application. 13 47 C.F.R. § 25.210(j). 5

For the foregoing reasons, SES respectfully requests STA beginning on October 31, 2011 to perform TT&C in order to drift AMC-5 from 79.1º W.L. to 80.9º W.L. and maintain it there with an east-west stationkeeping tolerance of +/- 0.1 degrees. SES also requests authority to operate AMC-5 in the conventional Ku-band upon its arrival at 80.9º W.L. Respectfully submitted, SES AMERICOM, INC. By: /s/ Daniel C.H. Mah Of Counsel Daniel C. H. Mah Karis A. Hastings Regulatory Counsel SatCom Law LLC SES Americom, Inc. 1317 F Street, N.W., Suite 400 Four Research Way Washington, D.C. 20004 Princeton, NJ 08540 Tel: (202) 599-0975 Dated: September 29, 2011 6

ANNEX 1: Letter from the Argentine Ministry of Communications to Joslyn R. Read of SES dated Sept. 21, 2011








ANNEX 2: Letter from N. Pablo Tognetti of AR-SAT to Joslyn R. Read of SES dated Sept. 20, 2011



Document Created: 2011-09-29 15:39:25
Document Modified: 2011-09-29 15:39:25
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