[Satellite Today – 5-29-08] Intelsat General Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Intelsat Ltd., has been awarded a contract by DRS Technologies Inc. to provide X-band satellite connectivity, fiber and teleport services in the Middle East using Intelsat infrastructure and the Skynet satellite fleet, owned and operated by Paradigm Secure Communications, Intelsat announced May 29.
     Under the terms of the contract, Intelsat General will provide DRS Technologies with a package of managed services that include an asymmetric 155 megabit per second (Mbps) satellite link, high-speed modems with advanced coding, ground stations, fiber connectivity and terrestrial equipment for the high-data-rate X-band link. The team will leverage the expertise of all three companies in the provision of a turnkey managed service to the government customer. DRS Technologies, based in Parsippany, NJ, is a supplier of integrated products, services and support to military forces, intelligence agencies and prime commercial contractors worldwide.
     The initial one-year contract has a value of $6.5 million and, if all options are exercised, will be valued at $48 million over three years. Paradigm, a wholly owned subsidiary of European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS), was established specifically to provide protected and survivable satellite communication services to the U.K. Ministry of Defence worldwide.