Launch of European designed cargo spacecraft postponed

Moscow: European designed unmanned cargo spacecraft, the ATV (automated transfer vehicle), will lift off for the international space station (ISS) in November instead of July, according to a senior Russian space official.

"Originally, the ATV was to fly to the ISS in July but the launch has been put off because technical issues in the program have to be resolved," Alexei Krasnov, head of the piloted program department at the Russian Space Agency, said.

Krasnov also warned that November was a busy month for launches, and there were some worries whether the ATV could be launched then. "I hope all issues related to the ATV will be resolved soon," he said.

He also confirmed that the ATV would be launched from the Kourou space centre in French Guiana.

The spacecraft was designed and built by the European aerospace major, EADS, on an order from the European Space Agency (ESA).