SkyTrac Systems, an Iridium value-added reseller (VAR), has won a contract to supply Iridium satcom systems for one of Europe’s largest medical evacuation helicopter fleets.
Under the contract, SkyTrac will equip up to 50 helicopters, belonging to the DRF (Deutsche Rettungsflugwacht e.V./German Air Rescue) emergency medical service (EMS), with ISAT-100 Iridium terminals, which will be used for air-to-ground voice, data and flight following. The Iridium terminals will be integrated with the helicopters’ Eurovav Flight Management Systems (FMS).
Don Thoma, executive vice president for Iridium said, “Iridium is being used by air ambulance and rescue services all over the world. It provides robust, reliable low-latency solutions for this application.”
“We employ satellite communications technology because it enhances our ability to deliver life-saving medical care in a timely fashion,” said Juergen Zoller, planning and control, DRF. “We chose SkyTrac because of its ability to efficiently integrate its hardware with our existing onboard FMS. SkyTrac developed custom applications to meet our requirements and they did so quickly and effectively. TEAM DRF is very pleased.”
Kathleen Wallace, president and CEO of SkyTrac Systems said, “This is a prestigious opportunity for us. We are extremely proud to be DRF’s satcom technology partner. SkyTrac will continue to deliver product to DRF over the next year and to procure European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approvals to support this effort.”
