Ariane 44L | Galaxy 11

Galaxy 11 was the first BSS-702 satellite. It was ordered in May 1997 and was successfully launched in December 1999 on an Ariane 4 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana. Galaxy XI has a payload of 64 active transponders; 24 operate in C-band and 40 operate in Ku-band. The spacecraft was designed for an end-of-life power of more than 10 kW. The satellite provides service to North America and Brazil.

The Ariane 4 was an expendable space launch system, developed by the Centre national d'études spatiales (CNES), the French space agency, for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was manufactured by ArianeGroup and marketed by Arianespace. Since its first flight on 15 June 1988 until the final flight on 15 February 2003, it attained 113 successful launches out of 116 total launches.

Arianespace SA is a multinational company founded in 1980 as the world's first commercial launch service provider. It undertakes the production, operation, and marketing of the Ariane programme. Their vehicles launch exclusively from French Guiana in South America.