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New satellite in service for Military communications
The British military's latest high-tech communication satellite has been commissioned into service following its successful launch in South America last month.
The satellite, Skynet 5A, is the first of three to be launched under a £3 billion Private Finance Initiative (PFI) programme which has seen the Ministry of Defence working in partnership with Paradigm Secure Communications, who are the service providers, and EADS-Astrium, who built the satellite itself.
The satellite, with its world beating antenna technology and high power and data rates, provides a significant enhancement to operational capability for our forces - whether deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan or at sea. It is also being used in the field of welfare services, to provide 'free' messages between service personnel on operations and their families and friends.
Lord Drayson, Minister for Defence Equipment and Support said:"This important milestone is very good news for the armed forces. Skynet 5 will supply about 2.5 times the capacity of the old system and generate a very significant improvement for our global communications systems - allowing us to pass more data faster. It is an excellent example of a successful Private Finance Initiative deal."
The Skynet 5A communications satellite, which is now in orbit 40,000 km above the earth's surface, beams communications signals between headquarters in the UK and British forces deployed across the globe.
The next satellite, Skynet 5B, is due to be launched towards the end of this year, and Skynet 5C in 2008.
