Free Republic

NEW YORK (Dow Jones/AP) - After failing to re-establish contact with an orbiting telecommunications satellite over the weekend, Loral Space & Communications declared it a total loss Monday. Telstar 4, which was insured for $141 million, was one of six satellites - three currently in orbit and two under construction - that privately held Intelsat had agreed to acquire for up to $1.1 billion. New York-based Loral lost contact with the satellite Friday morning when a short circuit disrupted operations. Despite the failure, Intelsat and Loral still expect the acquisition to occur on schedule, but the incident could reduce the...