On May 04, 2011 at 17:41 UTC the "Soyuz-2.1a” rocket-carrier with the "Fregat” upper stage was launched from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, a military-run launching base in northern Russia's Arkhangelsk region.
The rocket-carrier orbited the "Meridian” Russian communications satellite. The satellite will link terrestrial military forces, ground stations, aircraft and ships with command and control centers. The spacecraft launched Wednesday is the fourth Meridian satellite launched by Russia since 2006.