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Originally Posted by Elspode
Definitely not this one...this one fell off of the test stand, causing quite a stir. It was...well...broken.
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I believe that bird made it to the launch pad nine months later. Launch windows are difficult to come by and rarely missed. Satellites are internally quite robust. If I remember the numbers, everything must withstand up to 6 Gs in all three dimensions to withstand the extremes of launch. Outside of some external (and replaced) parts, that bird could have been launched - after some expediting and overtime.