Raytheon's Navy Multiband Terminal Achieves Unprecedented Satellite Communications Capability

MARLBOROUGH, Mass. --- In a major milestone for U.S. military satellite communications, Raytheon Company has successfully demonstrated simultaneous communications using low, medium and extended data rate wave forms. This capability will be critical to the successful deployment of the next generation of military communication satellites scheduled to launch in 2009.>> This first-of-its-kind achievement will enable mission planners to more efficiently use critical communications bandwidth. It will also provide warfighters with greater connectivity thereby improving overall situational awareness and mission success. As a result, soldiers and sailors will be able to execute far more complex and critical military applications.>> Raytheon is building the Navy Multiband Terminal under a $1.1 billion contract for the U.S. Navy that will lead to worldwide deployment of the new terminal on more than 300 ships, submarines and shore stations.>> This technical milestone, which was achieved using advanced extremely high frequency satellite simulators, promises increased communications efficiency in a highly protected environment. The Raytheon team was also able to set up and join independent low, medium and extended data rate communication channels and pass error-free data on each channel for extended periods of time.>> "No other satellite communications system in any of the branches of service has achieved simultaneous LDR, MDR and XDR log on and communications," said Jerry Powlen, vice president of Network Centric Systems' Integrated Communications Systems. "Achieving this milestone and doing so ahead of our customers' schedule will provide a critical capability to the fleet and all our armed forces.