BAIKONUR COSMODROME, Kazakhstan -- A Proton M booster with a Breeze M upper stage that was launched on April 19, 2018, at 1:12 am Moscow time (April 18, 2018 10:12 p.m. UTC; 6:12 p.m. EDT) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome has successfully delivered a Russian military payload into orbit.
This was the first launch in 2018 and the 417th launch overall of the Proton launch vehicle (including all its modifications starting in 1965).
The Proton was carrying the second in a new series of Blagovest satellites for the Russian military. Blagovest satellites provide communications to Russian armed forces as well as commercial users. It follows the first satellite, which launched in August 2017, also aboard a Proton.
After dominating the commercial launch market for years - along with the Ariane 5 - a confluence of factors has contributed to declining sales of Proton launches. A series of launch failures and changing launch market dynamics have reduced the Proton's appeal to commercial launch operators.
Still, ILS and Khrunichev have not given up on the venerable Proton. ILS and Khrunichev have conducted extensive quality control improvements to the Proton supply chain. ILS will lower the price of Proton launches and offer flexible launch dates. The two companies also plan to introduce upgrades to the Proton line, including a new smaller variant called the Proton Medium and a larger payload fairing for the Proton M.
These changes will allow ILS to compete against new launch vehicles like the Falcon 9 at lower price points to carry smaller satellites. It will also improve competitiveness in the commercial market, enabling Proton production to continue, even without Russian government launches. With these changes to pricing and lineup, Forecast International expects Proton production to continue until the early 2030s.
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