While we all patiently await the release of iOS 5, Apple’s assemblers could be getting a gold master release from September 23, according to one analyst — just in time for a mid-October launch of the long-awaited iPhone 5.

According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, iPhone and iPod touch assemblers are scheduled to receive a gold master release of Apple’s upcoming iOS 5 operating system from the week beginning September 23. Once the new OS is received, assemblers can begin installing it on Apple’s next-generation iPhone and iPod touch devices to get them ready for shipping.

Kuo also concurs with previous rumors that have claimed the fifth-generation will begin shipping from mid-October, according to AppleInsider:

A release of iOS 5 to assemblers the week of Sept. 23 means its likely finalized hardware units for the new iPhone and iPod touch will begin to ship at the end of September. With an estimated 10 to 12 days for shipping, the two new devices are likely to be available by mid-October, Kuo said.

Curiously, though, Ming-Chi Kuo says that according to his supply checks, there’s still no sign in the plants of the supposedly redesigned iPhone 5. Rather, all he’s seen reference to is the N94 iPhone, which rumors peg as the iPhone 4S… a speed bump, rather than a total overhaul.

iOS 5, which is now on its seventh beta, has been given a release date of this Fall by Apple, and seeding of the gold master release is a promising sign that the new operating system is ready for public release.