With the launch of the ASTRA 2A satellite in 1998, Societe Europeenne des Satellites(SES) broadened its reach to more of Europe. The satellite, built by Hughes Space and Communications Company (HSC), today known as Boeing Satellite Systems, Inc., is a Hughes 601HP body-stabilized model. It was the sixth Hughes spacecraft to be launched for the SES fleet, and was specifically designed for SES' second orbital slot of 28.2 degrees East longitude, to serve the United Kingdom. The ASTRA satellites are similar in appearance to other Hughes 601 models, with each having a cube-shaped body and two solar array wings oriented along its north-south axis and the antennas located on the east-west axis.