[Satellite TODAY 03-18-10] Intelsat General was awarded a $10.7 million contract by DRS Technical Services to provide X-band satellite connectivity in Southwest Asia on two X-band satellites owned and operated by Xtar and EADS Astrium subsidiary Paradigm Secure Communications, Intelsat General announced March 17.
The connectivity aims to enable military leaders to receive vital battlefield information in near real-time, allowing for timely and informed decisions.
    Intelsat General will provide network integration and end-to-end network monitoring and control through the Xtar-Eur satellite and Paradigm’s Skynet 5A satellite. The service will provide two 155-megabit per second satellite links as well as high-speed modems with advanced coding, ground stations, fiber connectivity and terrestrial equipment for the high-data-rate X-band link.
     Intelsat General also will offer managed network services from its teleport in Fuchsstadt, Germany, to provide out-of-band monitoring and control of the X-band carriers and remote terminals. Intelsat General’s secure operations center will be integrated with the DRS Network Operations Center to provide 24-hour network monitoring and help desk support. 
     “This effort will leverage the expertise of all four companies in delivering a solution for our customer in the vital region of Southwest Asia,” Intelsat General President Kay Sears said in a statement.