A malfunction in ground equipment in Kazakhstan prevented the planned liftoff of the Amos-3 telecommunications satellite 90 seconds before the scheduled launch this week, Space News reported. A transporter-erector crane failed to separate at a safe distance from the three-stage rocket.

The Land Launch satellite operates from a platform located in the former Soviet bloc area. The malfunction embarrassed Israeli government officials, who had invited foreign dignitaries to the home of President Shimon Peres to witness the launch. Israel Space Agency chairman and Kadima Knesset Member Yitzchak Ben-Yisrael said the delay is insignificant and pointed out that the satellite is one of the world's most advanced for its relatively small size.
 
Space News said that senior aerospace officials warned against staging a public relations event for the launch. "The whole thing was a huge embarrassment and highly irregular. Our style has always been to avoid big expectations and big promises. But they wanted to go for the glory, and this huge promotion they created just blew up in their faces," a senior executive said.