Boeing selects Harris Corp. antennas for Inmarsat Global Xpress satellite

MELBOURNE, Fla., 15 March 2014. Boeing engineers needed reliable Ka-band antennas for their work on the fourth Inmarsat Global Xpress satellite, part of Inmarsat’s $1.6 billion investment in the Global Xpress globally available, high-bandwidth, Ka-band network delivered by a single operator. They found their solution at Harris Corp. (NYSE:HRS), an international communications and information technology company, in Melbourne, Fla.

Harris won an 18-month, follow-on contract from Boeing to provide Ka-band antennas for the satellite. In orbit, the Harris antennas will direct 89 Ka-band user spot beams to the Earth creating a mobile broadband network with high-speed services for diverse applications, from deep-sea vessels to in-flight connectivity for airline passengers. Additional spot beams are available to provide dedicated service to users requiring specific coverage.

“The Harris antennas are important components in the Global Xpress satellite system, which is expected to provide global coverage by the end of 2014,” says Bill Gattle, vice president and general manager, national programs, Harris Government Communications Systems. “We are committed to delivering discriminating solutions in support of the rapidly developing high-throughput satellite market.”

The Global Xpress antennas are part of Harris’ flight-proven gimbal dish antenna systems, which enable beams to be steered to accommodate changing or increasing user demands. Harris has more than 30 years of experience designing, building, and flying spaceborne antennas for government and commercial applications. Products include unfurlable mesh reflectors, gimbaled dish antennas, and phased array antennas.