L-3 Electron To Supply S-band Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers To Space Systems/Loral

MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS

New York NY (SPX) Oct 21, 2005
L-3 Communications has announced that its Electron Technologies subsidiary has received a contract valued at over $20 million from Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) to provide S-band Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers (TWTAs) for two communications satellites being built for ICO Satellite Management and Terrestar Networks.

L-3 ETI will deliver a flight set of 130-watt S-band TWTAs for the ICO program and a flight set of 100-watt S-band TWTAs for the Terrestar program. This order represents the eighth and ninth flight sets of S-band TWTAs ordered from L-3 ETI by SS/L.

Both satellites under this order are geosynchronous (GEO) satellites based on SS/L's space-proven 1300 platform and will provide next-generation, 2-GHz mobile voice and data communications throughout the United States.

"We are extremely pleased to be selected by SS/L for the ICO and Terrestar programs," said Kevin Mallon, president of L-3 ETI. "L-3 ETI has an exceptional history of supporting SS/L and we appreciate the confidence the SS/L team has in our technical and production capabilities."

In communication satellites, TWTAs are used to amplify and transmit radio frequency signals back to Earth for a variety of applications, including voice, video and data.

MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS

Firm Foundation Laid For Premier Research And Development Spacecraft

Kirtland AFB NM (SPX) Oct 19, 2005
Demonstration and Science Experiments satellite will provide advanced technology to enhance war fighter communication, surveillance, and navigation when launched in 2008