Photo: Speedcast

Speedcast has won a key contract extension deal from the UK Ministry of Defence and Airbus, the company announced Jan. 10. Speedcast will provide gateway hosting services offering secure access to the SKYNET military satellite system from the Asia-Pacific region. Airbus is the trusted partner for the UK’s secure military satellite communications program.

In 2016, Speedcast built two 11 meter antenna systems at one of its teleport facilities in Australia and has provided secure hosting and maintenance services since that time. This contract award extends this successful partnership.

“Australia is an ideal geographical location to access the SKYNET fleet from the Asia-Pacific region, and Speedcast’s facility serving this project is rated Tier 4 by the World Teleport Association, so it’s one of the best in the Eastern hemisphere. Australia is also a Five Eyes intelligence alliance partner,” James Trevelyan, senior vice president of Enterprise and Emerging Markets at Speedcast, said in a statement.