BETHESDA, Md., 3 Nov. 2007. The military sector business of Iridium Satellite in Bethesda, Md., continues to show growth with cumulative U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) subscribers reaching 31,000, Iridium officials say.
Military traffic through Iridium's satellite network is up more than 9 percent -- an increase of almost 10 percent over last year -- and 300 percent more than what Iridium planned for this market at the outset of the year, company officials say.
In the past year, Iridium has introduced or enhanced military applications, including the introduction of the 9601 data modem, to the DOD through its contract with the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA).
Based on the company's short-burst data (SBD) messaging service, this modem is use by the DOD Department of Homeland Security for asset tracking/management and force protection.
Iridium also has participated in testing its Netted Iridium service with the U.S. Marine Corps Warfighting Lab. Netted Iridium is a push-to-talk voice and data communications service for the military and first-responder communities.
In addition, Iridium is working with Boeing on an effort called "iGPS," that uses the Iridium system to augment GPS signals to provide anti-jam and interference protection, improved operations in restrictive environments, enhanced availability and high accuracy.
Technical trials are have demonstrated the capability for iGPS to provide centimeter-level position accuracy, a significant improvement over current GPS capabilities. Boeing and Iridium are partnering to demonstrate initial capabilities of the system to the DOD by 2010.
For more information contact Iridium online at www.iridium.com.
