Orbcomm FM5

 1997-084F

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8 satellites were launched to plane A on 1997 Dec 23. Each had mass 41 kg, was 1.0m dia and 0.17m high. Future planes would be B,C,D and G. The Pegasus XL rocket, launched from Wallops Island, entered transfer orbit, with the HAPS stage circularizing, dispensing, and then lowering perigee.

The HAPS stage was the first to be integrated by Primex rather than Orbital. It was also the first to make a depletion burn to avoid repeating the debris explosion of the second HAPS flight in 1994.

Orbcomm A1
Date	Time	Event	Orbit
1997 Dec 23	1813	L-1011 takeoff from WFF
		100 km E of Virginia, 12 km alt
	1911:42	T+0:00 Drop by L-1011
	1911:47	Launch by Pegasus XL/HAPS
		T+1:17 Pegasus stage 1 burnout
		T+1:38 Stage 2 burn
		T+2:18 Fairing sep
		T+2:49 Stage 2 burnout
		T+6:14 Stage 2 sep
	1917	T+6:14 Stage 3 burn
	1919:03	T+7:21 Stage 3 burnout
	1920:02	T+8:20 Stage 3 sep	298 x 734 x 5.0
	1920:03	T+8:21 HAPS burn 1 34s
	1920:37	T+8:55 HAPS cutoff, transfer orbit	300? x 825? x 45.0
	2004:21?	T+52:39 HAPS burn 2 223s
	2008:04?	T+56:22 HAPS cutoff	825 x 836 x 45.0
	2008	T+57:02 A5 sep
	2010	T+59:02 A6 sep
	2012	T+61:02 A7 sep
	2014	T+1:03:02 A8 sep
	2016	T+1:05:02 A1 sep
	2018	T+1:07:02 A2 sep
	2020	T+1:09:02 A3 sep
	2022	T+1:11:02 A4 sep
	2025?	HAPS depletion	97.1 410 x 827 x 42.7