Israeli comm satellite loses connection with earth

The Israeli company Spacecom announced that it lost touch with the communications satellite Amos 5 on Saturday morning and has been trying to resume control of it.

“At the moment, the company does not have information as to the nature of the problem that caused the connection to be lost,” Spacecom said in a statement. “So far, the company has not succeeded in resuming its connection with the satellite.”

The company noted that the services usually provided by Amos 5 were no longer being provided to its various clients, and that the satellite, which was built by the Russian firm JSC Information Satellite Systems – Reshetnev, was $158 million.

The Amos 5, the fifth in a series of communications satellites launched by Spacecom, was plagued was plagued with a series of faults since its launch from Kazakhstan in 2011, leading the company to announce that it may not remain in service as long as initially planned – until 2027.

The Amos 5 provides services mostly to clients in Africa, the company said, as well as to other companies including the French telecommunications giant Orange and several Israeli clients.