september/october 2017 - satelliteevolutiongroup.com | september/october 20171 view from the top...

September/October 2017

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www.satellite-evolution.com | September/October 2017 1

View From The Top

What does the future hold?It’s that time of year again when we need to start gearing up for the socialseason – we’ve got three months of social events geared around Halloween,Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and everything in between. Children arereturning to school, students are on their way back to university, and those of us inthe satellite industry have recently returned from IBC 2017.

This has been my second year at the show, and it didn’t disappoint. There’s far more on offer than any one person canpossibly tackle on the show floor, which was reflected in the increased visitor numbers. As well as catching up with keyplayers in the satellite and communications sector, I make it a priority to take stock of the show as a whole, to check out thelatest trends and technology, and to assess the general feeling in the air.

It was clear from this year’s IBC that 4K and HDR continue to be a major focus; many stand to benefit from a moreextensive roll-out, from those selling the latest TVs, to the content creators, broadcasters and satellite operators. On arelated note, content security seemed to have ranked up to a higher level of importance this year, likely due to a combinationof growing 4K roll-out and the increasing piracy threat. It’s certainly a topic I’ll be looking into on a deeper level in futureissues. Virtual and augmented reality, too, were well represented at IBC 2017, although there wasn’t anything as visuallystunning at first glance as IBC 2016.

On the Saturday morning, 16 September, press were invited to a conference with David Hanson of Hanson Robotics Ltd.While not within the satellite communications field, the technology on display was truly dazzling. ‘We bring robots to life’ ismore than just their tagline – Hanson brought along two of his creations, Professor Einstein, an educational robot designedto teach children, and Sophia, an advanced robot designed in Audrey Hepburn’s image. During the event, press interacted

with Sophia to test her intelligence, with extremely impressive, ifunnerving, results. So, watch this space – human-like robots withartificial intelligence are getting closer than ever before.

The general mood of the attendees was mixed this year. Theexhibitors I spoke to were pleased with the event, and with theirpresence on the show floor – IBC remains a key show to be seen at.Visitors, too, were happy with the exhibition, and particularly pleasedwith the quality of the conference itself. However, there was also anair of concern about the status of the industry; finances are becomingincreasingly pressed for many, and no one is entirely sure what thefuture holds. Nevertheless, in the next three months of social andprofessional engagements, we’re sure to get a better idea of whatto expect. The grapevine is a wonderful way of gathering casualinformation, and everyone enjoys a little scuttlebutt.

Editor - Amy Saunders

Photo courtesy of Boeing Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

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www.satellite-evolution.com | September/October 20172

Contents

No part of this publication may betransmitted, reproduced or electronicallystored without the written permissionfrom the publisher.

DS Air Publications does not give anywarranty as to the content of the materialappearing in the magazine, its accuracy,timeliness or fitness for any particularpurpose. DS Air Publications disclaims allresponsibility for any damages or losses inthe use and dissemination of theinformation.

All editorial contentsCopyright © 2017 DS Air PublicationsAll rights reservedISSN: 1745-5502

DS Air Publications1 Langhurstwood RoadHorshamWest Sussex, RH12 4QDUnited KingdomT: +44 1403 273973F: +44 1403 273972Email: [email protected]

Printed by:Times PrintingSingapore

EditorAmy [email protected]

Circulation ManagerElizabeth George

PublisherRichard [email protected]

Managing DirectorDavid [email protected]

Photo courtesy Shutterstock

1 EditorialWhat does the future hold?

September/October 2017 - Vol.14. - No.5.

CEO CAMSChristopher [email protected]

Whitehill MediaSam [email protected]

4 Satellite newsNews and Views

SALES

Myth Buster - 3rd Edition- page 8

Q&A RSCC- page 12

Smart Cities- page 22

Satellite Interference - page 26

Q&A Cobham SATCOM- page 32

Tracking LEO Constellations- page 36

Smarter Shipping- page 40

Contents

Q&A NSLComm - page 42

High Throughput Satellites- page 16

6 Cellular backhauling over satellite: The smart way to do itExtract of a white paper produced by ND SatCom

Tricolor TV Broadband Service - page 46

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News Review & Analysis

Air quality-monitoring satellite in orbitThe first Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring ouratmosphere, Sentinel 5P, has been launched from thePlesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia. The 820kgsatellite was carried into orbit on a Rockot launcher.

The mission is expected to begin full operations sixmonths from now.

“Launching the sixth Sentinel satellite for theCopernicus programme is testament to the extensivecompetence we have here at ESA, from its moment ofconception to well into operations,” said ESA DirectorGeneral Jan Woerner. “The Sentinel-5P satellite is nowsafely in orbit so it is up to our mission control teams tosteer this mission into its operational life and maintain itfor the next seven years or more.”

Sentinel-5P - the P standing for Precursor - is thefirst Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring ouratmosphere.

The mission is one of six families of dedicatedmissions that make up the core of Europe’s Copernicusenvironmental monitoring network. Copernicus relies onthe Sentinels and contributing missions to provide datafor monitoring the environment and supporting civilsecurity activities. Sentinel-5P carries the state-of-the-art Tropomi to do just that.

Developed jointly by ESA and the Netherlands SpaceOffice, Tropomi will map a multitude of trace gases suchas nitrogen dioxide, ozone, formaldehyde, sulphurdioxide, methane, carbon monoxide and aerosols - allof which affect the air we breathe and therefore ourhealth, and our climate.

Sentinel-5P was developed to reduce data gapsbetween the Envisat satellite - in particular the Sciamachyinstrument - and the launch of Sentinel-5, and tocomplement the GOME-2 sensor on the MetOp satellite.

“Having Sentinel-5P in orbit will give us daily andglobal views at our atmosphere with a precision we neverhad before,” said Josef Aschbacher, ESA’s Director ofEarth Observation Programmes. “Our historic datarecords, together with the long-term perspective of theCopernicus satellite programme, opens the doors forgenerating datasets spanning decades - a prerequisiteto understanding our ever-changing Earth. “

In the future, both the geostationary Sentinel-4 andpolar-orbiting Sentinel 5 missions will monitor thecomposition of the atmosphere for CopernicusAtmosphere Services. Both missions will be carried onmeteorological satellites operated by Eumetsat.

Until then, the Sentinel-5P mission will play a keyrole in monitoring and tracking air pollution.

RSCC in the top 10 operators in RussiaRSCC’s performance in 2016 brought the Company intothe top ten of the Russia’s largest telecommunicationscompanies, according to the rating prepared by theCNews Analytics agency. RSCC has risen by three linesof rating vs. 2015.

The Company’s revenue from the provision ofservices grew 23.7 percent, which at the end of 2016amounted to 11.4 billion roubles (excluding VAT).

Yuri Prokhorov, RSCC Director General, comments:“The confident growth of financial performance from year

to year demonstrates not only the well-coordinated workof our team, but also the growing demand for satellitecommunications. Today, our Company participates inalmost all government and social telecommunicationsprojects in Russia. At the same time, RSCC is vigorouslyoperating in all geographically accessible markets,increasing the number of international contracts, andserving customers in over 50 countries of the world.”

In February 2016 the Express-AMU1 satellite wascommissioned, marking the completion by RSCC of thesatellite constellation upgrade program for 2009-2015.The Company has almost completely revamped its spacefleet, which has more than doubled the capacity of theRussian state-owned satellite orbital group. From 2009to 2016, seven new spacecraft were built and put intoorbit: Express-AM5, AM6, AM7, AM8, AT1, AT2 andAMU1. In March 2016, the Government of the RussianFederation approved a new Federal Space Program for2016-2025. The Program envisages the building andorbiting of seven geostationary satellites for RSCC,providing FSS, television and radio broadcasting, as wellas mobile communications for the Office of the Presidentand for the Government. Also, four satellites in the highlyelliptical orbit Express-RV are scheduled to be launched.The plan is to build the new GEO satellites based onextra-budgetary funds.

ViaSat to pursue legal action against OfcomOfcom, the UK’s communications regulator, has grantedInmarsat a license for its European Aviation Network, amove ViaSat strongly opposes.

The relevant radio spectrum was initially awarded toInmarsat in 2009 to create a mobile satellite system thatcould be used by the emergency services. As a result,the change of use of the spectrum into a commercialopportunity creates an unfair competitive advantage andcould create a monopoly in the European inflightconnectivity market – ultimately, consumers will be theones who lose out as they end up restricted to a good-but-not-great service, at best.

ViaSat has frequently opposed this misuse and isnow looking to pursue legal action against Ofcom as aresult of its decision. ViaSat’s President and ChiefOperating Officer Rick Baldridge has issued the followingstatement: “We are extremely disappointed by Ofcom’sdecision to grant Inmarsat authorization to operate itsEAN. The facts are clear: Inmarsat is abusing the initialgrant of the 2GHz spectrum, as set forth by the EuropeanCommission (EC) by changing the original tendergranted to them with their intent to deploy a Pan-European terrestrial wireless network; and admittedlymissing numerous deadlines as related to the originalaward.

This blatant misuse of spectrum needs to stop now.It establishes precedent for any organization to usespectrum without following the rules. As we’ve publiclystated: we believe the EAN violates the original decisionof the EU legislature that the S-band be used for mobilesatellite systems—not a terrestrial wireless network (alsoknown as an Air-to-Ground or ATG). We remain diligentin our efforts to have the EC halt Inmarsat’s ATG

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News Review & Analysis

deployments in the S-band; declare Inmarsat’s ATG plansas inconsistent with EU law and the original S-bandspectrum award; and retender the spectrum.

And we’re not alone. A number of regulators haveshared their own frustration with the EC’s failure to act,despite requests for the EC to address this critical legalquestion. If the EC does not do the right thing and makeclear that Inmarsat’s ATG deployment is not a permitteduse of the original granted spectrum, we will be left withno other option: we will fight the decision in each countrythat authorizes an illegal ATG network deployment.

In recent weeks, ViaSat has taken a strong stand infighting the EAN across Europe. We have advanced ourlegal actions against Belgium and the EuropeanCommission; and filed challenges with German and Italianregulators, making clear that we will take further legalaction in Germany and Italy if they allow Inmarsat toimplement EAN as advertised. We now fully expect topursue legal action against Ofcom as a result of theirdecision this week,” said Rick Baldridge, ViaSat’sPresident and Chief Operating Officer.

Shaping Africa’s digital futureAfricaCom is one of those events that you ink in on yourschedule at the beginning of each year. But how effectiveis it? It is certainly well attended and offers you the chanceto network with thousands of industry professionals andforge new business collaborations.

But is Africa still the growth market that many analystswere predicting? Well demand for connectivity is certainlygrowing beyond the big cities, and this meanscommunities need faster, more reliable broadband tosupport business growth, as well as healthcare andeducational services.

In March this year, SES and Intersat announced thatthey had signed a multi-year agreement to deliver internetservices across Africa. Intersat, one of the largestproviders of internet solutions on the African continent,will be providing broadband connectivity to businessesand consumers via SES’s NSS-12 satellite, located at 57degrees East.

“We have been in partnership with Intersat for manyyears in various markets and sectors. The new agreementreaffirms how SES satellites’ comprehensive coverageand SES’s competitively priced flexible connectivityplatform with a 'plug 'n' play' offering has enabled Intersatto expand their reach across East Africa,” said FerdinandKayser, Chief Commercial Officer at SES.

According to Konnect Africa, more than half thepopulation of Sub-Saharan Africa lives beyond a 25kmrange of terrestrial fibre-optic networks. The company hasbold ambitions for the region and offers innovative serviceofferings and products. Packaged offers inspired by ‘payas you go’ models and Wi-Fi hotspots schemes, havealready convinced a number of local operators, telecomcompanies and resellers. With products aligned with thepreferences and habits of end-users, Konnect Africa ismaking a strong push with a double objective: to be apartner of choice on the continent and to demonstratehow satellite technology is today the most relevant solutionfor unlocking access to the Internet in Africa.

So what can you expect to experience at AfricaCom?There will be a brand-new technology arena, dedicatedto mapping Africa’s journey through the fourth industrialrevolution. The Technology Arena will host the newAfricaCom 20/20 show floor feature, the AHUB, theInnovation Stage and TV Connect Africa. Expect visionaryinsights on future tech trends and a vibrant showcase ofnew digital products.

The satellite sector will be well represented at the eventwith companies such ABS, Avanti, Azercosmos, CETel,China Satellite Communications, Comtech EF Data,Eutelsat, Gilat, Intelsat, Measat, ND SatCom, Newtec O3b,Spacecom, SpacePath and UHP Networks.

Stop by the ND SatCom stand (B42) to see the latestinnovations in satellite communications: Cellular backhauland SKYWAN 5G.

The SKYWAN 5G represents the fifth generation ofthe SKYWAN product family. SKYWAN 5G transforms theway communication networks are created and behave bymerging VSAT & comprehensive IT capabilities into ONEhardware device. SKYWAN 5G enables the most flexible,scalable and reliable VSAT networks ever. SKYWAN 5Gis an MF-TDMA modem with integrated DVB-S2 receiver,allowing data to be transmitted in a single hop directlyfrom their origin to their destination. Whatever type ofnetwork you request, from star to mesh or point-to-point,SKYWAN 5G reliably fits all topologies. One compacthardware and one identical software for all network rolessimplify logistics, making hardware and software changessuperfluous.

A company that has been in the news recently, withthe acquisition of Tango Wave Inc, is European-basedSATCOM amplifier manufacturer and equipment supplier- SpacePath. Exhibiting on stand B110, the company willbe displaying their extensive satellite product range forthe African region. Tango Wave’s uplink amplifiers andsub-systems are among the most advanced on the markettoday, with small, lightweight, high efficiency designsoffering superlative performance.

Also exhibiting are UHP Networks, one of the fastestgrowing VSAT network equipment suppliers in the world.Its core products include UHP universal satellite routersand advanced Network Management System. UHP is theindustry’s first fully software-defined, high-throughputVSAT router, which can be used in a network of any sizeand any topology either as remote or a building block of aVSAT hub. UHP-powered solutions are efficient andreliable, with industry-best total cost of ownership. Thesesolutions have been deployed in over 200 networks bybroadcasters, Tier 1 telecom service providers, andgovernment agencies.

The company recently entered in operation withTelevisa, a major television network in Mexico. Televisahas migrated more than 200 VSAT´s to UHP network fordata communications and asset monitoring operationsacross Mexico. Its unique architecture is based on a singleUHP platform and comprises SNG trucks and flyawayterminals to transmitting voice and data over TDMA links.UHP Networks CEO Vagan Shakhgildian stated, “This isan important milestone for us. We are proud to contributeto the success of Televisa, a leading global mediacompany.”

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Cellular Backhaul: White Paper Extract

Photo courtesy of ND SatCom

Cellular backhauling over satellite: Thesmart way to do itSatellite operators have been working withmobile operators for many years now. For theformer, it has been a lucrative business withhighly desired customers; for the latter, it hasbeen the option chosen last. When comparedto mobile’s own transmission networks basedon high-throughput, low-cost optical networks,satellite has been characterized as anexpensive, delay-introducing medium withlimited throughput, to be used only whennecessary. If satellite operators want to expandtheir business with mobile operators, they willhave to move on from their decades-oldparadigms and start learning and providingwhat mobile operators really need. In thisWhite Paper extract, Robert Novak, ExpertSKYWAN Cellular Backhaul ND SatComGmbH, explains.

While mobile penetration in some developed countrieshas stabilized at around 120 percent of the population forsome years now, there are still around three billion peoplewithout access to mobile telecommunications, which is almost40 percent of the world´s population. Global mobile data trafficovertook mobile voice in December 2009; only a year laterthe volume of mobile data was twice that of mobile voice.Mobile operators have been very efficient in building theinfrastructure and providing mobile services to 60 percent ofthe world’s population, yet to serve the remainder a newtelecommunication paradigm has to be adopted.

Business modelThe business model behind the swift adoption of mobileservices does not fit anymore. Average revenue per user(ARPU) in remote and rural areas cannot cover the cost oftelecom equipment needed to provide the service, i.e., basestations and backhauling infrastructure. Operators must lowerboth CapEx and OpEx in order to run a profitable network in

those areas. Moreover, they need to do it fast, because otherplayers in the market are becoming more interested in offeringthe same services. Those players are, albeit smaller, veryflexible and adapt to changes rapidly; plus they are open tonew technologies without the need to operate expensivelegacy infrastructures.

According to Ericsson, a great savings potential lies inthe network design phase, i.e., network dimensioning:“Network measurements reveal that the low-load sites areoften over-dimensioned, i.e., operating at sub-optimalcapacity utilization levels. This leads to higher energyconsumption per transferred byte. Precise dimensioning withthe right radio site hardware for each traffic segment canreduce energy consumption by up to 40 percent whilemaintaining network performance.”

What goes for energy in this case also goes for capacity,which is even more pertinent when backhauling is done oversatellite. With satellite bandwidth still so expensive, it is clearwhy operators choose it only when absolutely necessary. Itis a sort of paradox: satellite operators’ hardest sales comefrom their technically most capable customers – mobileoperators.

It should not be that hard given all the physicalrequirements for a cost-effective cellular backhaul oversatellite are already there; what is needed is somedevelopment work and a bit of imagination. With that in mind,the three most impor tant aspects of the newtelecommunications paradigm could be described as:

• Use the best technologies;• Adopt dynamic network planning approaches; and• Develop new business models.

The entire White Paper is available from the SatelliteEvolution Group website. Please use the following link:http://www.satelliteevolutiongroup.com/articles/SKYWAN-CELLBACKHAUL.pdfPhoto courtesy of Shutterstock

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Myth Buster 3rd Edition

By Richard Swardh, Senior Vice President, MNO for Comtech EF Data

All satellite solutions deliver thesame mobile broadbandexperience!

Image courtesy of: iStock

The third piece in my myth busterseries focuses on the notion that allsatellite bandwidth delivers the samenetwork performance when used formobile backhaul. In today’s competitivelandscape, it is not uncommon to readabout satellite ground infrastructureproviders, operators or integrators,marketing backhaul services to mobileoperators claiming that all satellitesolutions are basically equal and deliversimilar levels of performance. But thatis not always the case. The impressionthat 1Mbps from one satellite platformis always equal to 1Mbps from anotherplatform does not hold true when youlook beyond the physical layer and startto look at the application thetransmission is actually there tosupport.

As I wrote in my first myth buster

piece, “Challenging Perceptions” (seethe May/June issue of Satell iteEvolution), it is important in any mobilenetwork design to first and foremostlook at the application to be used end-to-end and then choose whatunderlying transmission technology hasthe capability to support the service inthe most efficient way. In the case ofmobile backhaul, this goes beyondlooking at just megabits per second onthe transmission link between the basestation and the core network. Instead,it focuses on how the mobile servicesas experienced by the consumer areactually working and meeting theexpectations of the end user. Thisholistic end-to-end approach goesbeyond just looking at data sheets andrate cards and instead, has a deepunderstanding of mobile network

protocols and Quality of Experience asa center piece.

Being a mobile network executive isa very demanding job and there aremany things that can keep you up atnight. Not only are you tasked to stayahead of the latest technology trendslike software defined networking,virtualization and 5G, but also be up todate on new applications and theconstant threat to the bottom line fromover the top (OTT) services. In additionto this, you are tasked with growing andscaling your network cost efficiently withthe highest degree of quality while youcater to an explosion in mobile dataservices. And, you are asked to do allof this while there is also ongoing,intense competition for new customersbased on price, speed and networkquality.

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Richard Swardh is Senior VicePresident, Mobile NetworkOperators for Comtech EF Data. Inthis role, he leads the marketdevelopment and direction for the2G/3G/LTE mobile backhaulmarket, directing long-term strat-egic initiatives and defining solutionsuites and feature sets. A mobilenetwork backhaul veteran,Swardh’s background includesstrategic and operational positionsat Ericsson with businessdevelopment, partnership manage-ment and strategy executionresponsibilities. He holds both aBachelor of Science degree inMechanical Engineering and aBachelor of Business degree inAdministration and Logistics fromVaxjo University in Sweden.

It is a well-known fact in the mobileindustry that how a customer perceivesthe network performance on his/hersmar tphone greatly affects theperception of the mobile networkoperator (MNO) delivering the service.There is also a direct correlationbetween customer satisfaction, churnand profitability. All MNOs understandthis well, and it is therefore a commonpractice to have performance bonusesof senior executives tied to networkquality.

As highlighted by McKinsey &Company in their report “Everywhere,all the time, really fast: The importanceof network quality,” the use ofsmartphones and the rise of mobilebroadband make network quality a keytopic as data-savvy customersincreasingly select their carriers basedon network coverage and speed. Priceremains the most important factor forcustomers when selecting a mobile

plan, but of the 11 decision factors usedin a McKinsey consumer survey,network quality now occupies spots 2through 5.

Key performance indicatorsTo be able to drive a mobile network tomaximum efficiency and provide thebest Quality of Experience to end users,there are a few Key PerformanceIndicators (KPI) that mobile networkexecutives like to closely watch. In thecase of satellite backhaul and 3Gnetworks in particular, one such KPI isRadio Resource Control (RRC)Accessibility Rate. In a mobile networkwith fiber or microwave based backhaul,the goal of this parameter is 100percent. When the RRC AccessibilityRate KPI is not meeting thisexpectation, Quality of Experience forend users goes down and re-transmissions start to occur in thebackhaul. This translates to loss ofrevenue for the mobile operator and adecrease in customer satisfaction. Formore details on this behaviour, Iencourage you to read this white paper:Performance Challenge of 3G overSatellite - Methods for IncreasingRevenue & Quality of Experience.

But, mobile network operators arenot the only ones taking a keen interestin KPIs. Telecom regulators across theworld keep a watchful eye on howmobile networks perform, and in manycountries spectrum licenses that MNOsneed to provide their services are tiedto meeting a certain performancecriteria. These regulations usually followa model where there is an element ofnetwork coverage required, as well asKPI targets for call completion rate andthroughput. The RRC Accessibility Rateplays an important role here. If theseKPIs are not met, the MNO is in violationof the terms of the license and theRegulator may hand out a hefty fine,revoke the license or in some caseseven imprison MNO executives! Seereference 1, 2 and 3 for recent examplesof regulators enforcing these rules inAfrica, Asia as well as Latin America.

The bandwidth sharing technologyused in Comtech EF Data’s HeightsNetworking Platform is based on SCPCtechnology that is an assured accesstechnology. When using Heights, jitterand latency is kept at a minimum andthe RRC Accessibility Rate KPI willcome very close to its 100 percent

target. However, shared accesstechnologies like TDMA cannot meetthe same KPI target because of itsadditional jitter and latency. The reasonfor this is that TDMA uses a time planto send information, i.e. data has to waitfor a time slot to be transmitted whichintroduces variable delay. Furthermore,if the data does not fit in an assignedframe in a given time slot, asegmentation and reassembly (SAR)process is invoked causing further jitterand delay.

The difference between the HeightsNetworking Platform’s jitter of less than10ms and TDMA’s much higher jittermay sound insignificant and is manytimes overlooked. However, itrepresents a significant difference inhow a mobile network actually performs.

Over the past year, Comtech EFData has collected statistics frommobile operators all over the worldrunning hundreds of sites backhauledover satellite using both competitors’solutions, as well as Comtech’s. Due tothe confidential nature of theinformation, we cannot provide namesand exact details. However, theexamples are based on actual andrecent measurements from mobileoperators running production Comtech

Photo courtesy of Jaromir Chalabala/Shutterstock

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and TDMA networks under load withreal customer traffic.

Example 1 – Mobile Network Operatorrunning a 3G base station over satelliteusing Comtech equipment:

• The RRC Accessibility SuccessRate is around 99.95 percent.

• In simplistic terms, this can betranslated to 1 out of 2,000 voice ordata call attempts fail to be set up.

• This is an acceptable performanceaccording to most mobile networkoperators.

Example 2 – The same Mobile NetworkOperator as example 1 with a 3G basestation connected via TDMA vendor 1:

• The RRC Accessibility Rate KPI isaround 96.5 percent on average.

• In simplistic terms, this can betranslated to 1 out of 28 voice ordata attempts fail with TDMA.

• This, of course, will result in aconsiderable reduction in end users’Quality of Experience beyond whatmany mobile network operators findacceptable.

Example 3 – Asian based MobileNetwork Operator running a 3G basestation over TDMA vendor 2:

• The RRC Accessibility Rate KPI is70 percent on average and this isfar outside any acceptable level ofperformance.

• Needless to say, and after muchregret, this mobile network operatorclosed down the TDMA solution andmoved to SCPC.

Example 4 – Middle Eastern basedMobile Network Operator adding 3Gbase stations to an existing 2G networkover TDMA vendor 3:

• The RRC Accessibility Rate KPI is65.9 percent on average for the 3Gtraffic.

• Solution being moved to Heights tofulfill both 2G and 3G KPIs.

While most satell ite backhaulsolutions appear to deliver a similarservice on paper, the examples aboveclearly demonstrate that not all satellitetechnologies can deliver the samenetwork performance when used for

mobile backhaul. The technicalspecifications developed by 3GPP andused in mobile networks are notdesigned with satellite in mind andmany of them are very sensitive tolatency and jitter, especially when itinvolves delivering 3G services. Thenegative impact of jitter is real as shownin the difference in RRC AccessibilityRate KPI and poor performance reflectsbadly on everyone. Comtech’s solutionhas been designed with this challengein mind and are well suited to deliver

References:1. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/mythbusters-1st-edition-challenging-

perceptions-richard-swardh?trk=prof-post2. http://www.mckinsey.com/practice-clients/tmt/everywhere-all-the-time-

really-fast-the-importance-of-network-quality3. http://www.comtechefdata.com/files/articles_papers/

Performance%20Challenge%20of%203G%20over%20Satellite.pdf4. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Call-drops-Trai-seeks-power-to-

imprison-fine-violators/articleshow/52657540.cms5. http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/articulo/cartera/negocios/2015/11/9/ift-

multa-con-410-mdp-telefonica6. http://www.nation.co.ke/business/Telecom-operators-cough-up-Sh190m-

fine-for-poor-service/996-3438004-r3bq7dz/

the super ior mobile networkperformance needed to achieve happyend users who are satisfied with theirmobile service experience and stayloyal to their mobile operator. Satelliteservice providers and integrators thatunderstand this will keep a competitiveedge and retain more satisfiedcustomers who keep coming back formore all while enabling the MNO tosatisfy the terms of the mobile licenseas set forward by the TelecomRegulator.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

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https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/mythbusters-1st-edition-challenging-perceptions-richard-swardh?trk=prof-post

https://www.mckinsey.com/practice-clients/tmt/everywhere-all-the-time-really-fast-the-importance-of-network-quality

https://www.comtechefdata.com/files/articles_papers/Performance%20Challenge%20of%203G%20over%20Satellite.pdf

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Call-drops-Trai-seeks-power-to-imprison-fine-violators/articleshow/52657540.cms

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Call-drops-Trai-seeks-power-to-imprison-fine-violators/articleshow/52657540.cms

http://www.nation.co.ke/business/Telecom-operators-cough-up-Sh190m-fine-for-poor-service/996-3438004-r3bq7dz/

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Q&A RSCC

The Russian Satellite Commun-ication Company (RSCC) is theRussian state satellite operatorwhose spacecraft provide a globalcoverage. RSCC belongs to the tenlargest world satellite operators interms of satellites and orbital slotsand has more than 45 years ofexperience. RSCC provides a fullrange of communications andbroadcasting services via its ownsatellite fleet of 12 satellites andterrestrial infrastructure: videodistribution and contributions, DTHservices, satellite news gathering,presidential and governmentapplications, broadband accessand Internet, IP trunking andcellular backhaul, mobility solutionsfor vessels and other. The companydeploys regional TV satell itedistribution networks as well asmulti-functional corporate andgovernment VSAT networks.

50 years and countingThe Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) wasfounded in 1967 to deliver TV and radio broadcast andcommunications services. The company owns the largestsatellite constellation in Russia, in addition to its capacityleased from other operators. The RSCC has a network oftelecommunications and its own high-speed fibre. AmySaunders spoke with Yuri Prokhorov, Director General of theRSCC, to find out more about the company’s market presence,services, and outlook, in its 50th year of operations.

Yuri Prokhorov, Director Generalof the RSCC

Dubna teleport

Q&A RSCC

Question: Can you tell us about theRSCC’s development over the years,from its founding to where it standstoday?Yuri Prokhorov: In November 1967, thefirst satellite network of the Orbitasystem was launched in the SovietUnion to deliver Central Televisionprograms from Moscow to Siberia, theFar East, and Central Asia. In 1968, the‘Space Communications Station’ wasset up, whose tasks included theoperation and development of ground-based satell ite communicationsequipment, the provision of Central TVprograms and the telephonecommunication channels via satellites.Over the next 50 years, the SpaceCommunication Station has grown intoa full-fledged operator – the RSCC, afederal state-owned unitary enterprise,which today is one of the largest satelliteoperators in the world.

The history of RSCC is inextricablylinked with the development and

operation in Russia of domesticcommunication and broadcastingsatellites Molniya (‘Lightning’), Ekran(‘Screen’), Gorizont (‘Horizon’), andEkspress (‘Express’), as well as DTHsatellite systems.

An important milestone for RSCCwas arranging satellite-suppor tedtelevision broadcasts of the MoscowSummer Olympics in 1980. To solve thisproblem, a Space CommunicationsCenter (SCC) was set up in Dubna inthe Moscow Region, which remains thelargest teleport in Russia and EasternEurope.

A new stage in the growth of RSCCbegan in the late 1990s and 2000s,when new satellites of the Express-Aseries were launched into orbit, followedby Express-AM satellites.

In 2003 and 2004, three newteleports became part of RSCC - theSkolkovo, Zheleznogorsk, andKhabarovsk SCCs.

The RSCC built its own VSATnetwork, and in 2009 started to activelypursue the services based on VSATtechnologies - data transmission andthe Internet, and communications andbroadcasting services on sea vessels,including in the Arctic region. In 2015,we pioneered the Ka-band satelliteservices, which was a totally newmarket in Russia. Today, the length ofthe RSCC satellite network in Ka-bandis seven thousand kilometres, which isperhaps the longest satellite network inthe world.

Currently, the RSCC fleet includestwelve spacecraft in geostationary orbit,and five telepor ts, i.e. spacecommunication centres, throughoutRussia. The RSCC boasts its owncenter for compression of programs and

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Q&A RSCC

RSCC service area

multiplexing of digital transport streams,and provides a wide range of moderncommunication and broadcastingservices. All this enables the companyto occupy a leading position in themarket of Russia, CIS and Central Asia,as well as provide services to usersfrom 52 countries. At the World Summitfor Satellite Financing in Paris, RSCCwas recognized as the world’s bestregional satellite operator of the year in2009 and 2015.

Question: The RSCC is celebrating its50th year of operations this year.What do you feel have been thegreatest achievements during thelast 50 years?Yuri Prokhorov: I think the main resultof our work is user satisfaction. Fromthe satellite communication station,whose tasks included exclusively theoperation of facilities, RSCC grew intoa full-fledged universal operator. Theenterprise was preserved anddeveloped in the era of political systemchange and deep economic crisis in thecountry. We experienced a painfulperiod of spacecraft failures in orbit andlosses of satellites at launch. Today,RSCC successfully operates in a highlycompetitive environment.

We managed to become anoperator which is convenient to workwith. Having staged a managementrevolution, we developed into a client-oriented company that, in the satellitebusiness, successfully competes withthe world’s top Big Four. In an openmarket, the Russian consumer andservice providers today in most caseschoose the services of RSCC: 80percent of Russian users work throughdomestic operators. At present, ourspacecraft are highly competitive on theglobal market.

Question: What can you tell us aboutthe RSCC’s services and marketpresence?Yuri Prokhorov: Initially, the goal of thecompany was to satisfy the needs ofRussian customers, but then RSCCbegan to offer international satellitecapacity to domestic customers,subsequently turning into aninternational commercial operator.Today, about 40 percent of thecompany’s revenues come frominternational sales. The RSCC is oneof the key players in the Middle East

market, providing support to its regionaland European customers. In addition,the RSCC successfully operates inNorth and Sub-Saharan Africa, SouthAsia and Latin America.

Ver tical expansion meant thedevelopment of new services andapplications, including corporatenetworks, mobile communications,broadband access and RSCC owntelevision platform. Based on its owntelevision platform, RSCC provides acomprehensive service to broadcastersin a single window mode. Servicesprovided through the platform arefocused primarily on media outfits thatdistr ibute their content in cabletelevision networks in Russia.

Another promising area has beenmaritime solutions. Currently, weprovide services for sea vessels in theAtlantic, Arctic and Pacific Oceansincluding access to the Internet,reception of television programs, videosurveil lance, weather data trans-mission, telephone communications,etc.

Question: Where do you see the mostopportunities for the RSCC goingforwards, and are there anychallenges on the horizon?Yuri Prokhorov: We see our main taskin the full satisfaction of our customers.The market structure is changing today,new areas appear at the intersection ofIT and communications. In our opinion,the future belongs to the convergenceof services. Social tasks and rapidlychanging user needs acquire particularimportance. We plan to work in allgeographically accessible markets,while continuing to develop vertically.

Question: In February 2017, theRSCC announced plans to expand itsequipment line in the ground-basedfacilities to support TV andbroadband data transmissionservices. Can you expand on theseplans?Yuri Prokhorov: Indeed, the RSCCputs in a lot of time and effor t tocontinually monitor new advancedtechnologies and equipment, bothRussian and foreign-made, which wewill be able to use in future to providebroadcasting services or broadbanddata transmission in the Ka-band. Afterall, the initial l ist of equipmentmanufacturers that meet therequirements of RSCC for quality andreliability is rather limited. Nevertheless,we are taking stock of new players. Thisallows us to be at the forefront ofunderstanding the market trends. Weare committed to continuousimprovement of the quality andreliability of services in order to meetthe expectations of the most demandingclient.

The market for technologies ischanging very quickly, becoming moreflexible and informative. We do not focuson one manufacturer, which allows usto remain free in terms of choice oftechnology and price policy. Variousmanufacturers of equipment offer theirwares to us quite often. If we see thepotential promise and value for us, theequipment would be subjected to ourtough testing in a variety of conditions.We evaluate such equipment not onlyfor compliance with the declaredtechnical characteristics, but also for itsreal performance characteristics,maintainability, assembly culture and

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Q&A RSCC

quality, and friendliness of the interface.All this enables our technical specialiststo increase reliability of the equipmentand reduce fault rate in the process ofsubsequent operation.

Question: April 2017 saw the RSCCsign an agreement with HorizonSatfor the use of Express-AM6 satellitecapacity and later in May 2017, asimilar deal was struck withRomantis for capacity on Express-AM7 and Express-AM22, to improvecommunications and broadcastingServices in the Middle East andcentral and southern Asia. What arethe regions of importance to theRSCC, and what do you expect toachieve from the agreements?Yuri Prokhorov: The RSCC primarilyis a commercial operator, concentratingon the implementation of commercialprojects and making a profit. We workclosely with European service providersto make communication servicesavailable in the Middle East, which,incidentally, is the oldest region wherethe RSCC established its presenceoutside Russia.

The solutions based on the

Express-AM satellites are distinguishedfor making it possible to suppor tEurope-Asia, Europe-Middle East, andEurope-Latin America connectivitywithout the need for relay operationsand with minimal delays, which is ofprime value for users. Agreements withHorizonSat and Romantis have enabledus to expand our presence in the MiddleEast and Central Asia.

Question: What do you expect theRSCC to achieve in the rest of 2017,and indeed, during its next 50 yearsof operations?Yuri Prokhorov: Last year, against thebackdrop of fall ing revenuesexperienced by the major ity ofoperators in the world satell itecommunications market, the RSCCposted good revenue growth. Our Rubleearnings shot up by 24 percent. Themain task of RSCC until the end of 2017is to maintain business growth and fulfillthe planned indicators on revenues inthe conditions of the industrystagnation.

Going forward, looking ahead some50 years from now, the most importantgame-changer in the satellite industry

Zheleznogorsk teleport

as a whole will be a new generation ofspecialists coming to work in theindustry.

Discoveries in related fields, suchas chemistry and material science, willleave no stone unturned in the veryapproach to communication services.The English writer Arthur Clarke, whoin 1945 proposed the idea of using thegeostationary orbit for the purposes ofcommunications and broadcastingservices, in his novel Fountains ofParadise acquainted the general publicwith the concept of the ‘space lift,’originally conceived by the Russianscientist K.E. Tsiolkovsky in 1895.

If in the future it becomes possibleto overcome the major hurdle in thisconcept, i.e. to develop a strong superfibre for the manufacture of a heavy-duty cable, the space lift may becomea new economical means for launchingsatellites.

We could repair spacecraft in thegeostationary orbit and upgrade themto comply with ever-changing needsand technologies. This would allowsatell ite operators to becomeunprecedentedly flexible and betterserve our users.

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High Throughput Satellites

AMOS-17 will deliver Ka, Ku and C-band services with a combination of broad regionalbeams and high throughput spot beams

Changing the world with HTSHigh throughput satellites (HTS) have proved a real game-changer for the communicationsindustry. Delivering up to 20 times as much throughput as a traditional satellite enablessignificant cost savings per bit, making new applications cost effective and accessible. Whilelaunch delays set back plans during the latter half of 2016, 2017 has been rife with news andlaunches of the latest HTS – here, we take a look at the latest developments.

Ask anyone in the satellite industry what the biggestinnovation in the last 10 years has been, and many will namethe advent of high throughput satellites (HTS). Lauded fortheir ability to deliver many times more throughput thantraditional satellites from the same amount of allocated orbitalspectrum, HTS provide lower cost-per-bit capacity byachieving a high level of frequency re-use and spot beamtechnology.

Timing has been auspicious for HTS. Largely designedto deliver broadband and connectivity services on a globalscale, if the technology had been launched 20 years ago, itprobably wouldn’t have achieved the same level of backingand popularity it has done today, in the age of the Internet.HTS technology has truly hit the ground running.

Storming the marketAccording to Euroconsult’s June 2017 report, ‘HighThroughput Satellites: Vertical Market Analysis & Forecasts,’the total committed investment from the 30 satellite operatorsin HTS systems has reached almost US$19 billion. Therehave been 36 GEO-HTS launches in the last decade, but

around 100 more are expected in 2017-2025, with an averagelaunch rate of 11 each year.

“After relatively low net additions of HTS supply in 2015and 2016, due in part to slippage of launch schedules,capacity supply is now set to more than double to nearly2,000Gbps by 2018, reaching roughly 3,600Gbps by 2020,”said Brent Prokosh, Senior Consultant at Euroconsult andcontributor to the report. “Nevertheless, the growth in GEO-HTS is to be overshadowed by the emergence of non-geostationary (NGSO) constellation projects. NGSO-HTSconstellation projects are building momentum, promisingmassive volumes of capacity supply, low latency and global(or near-global) coverage.

While it is highly unlikely that all will come to fruition,NGSO-HTS projects such as the continued expansion of SES’O3b fleet of MEO satellites, OneWeb, SpaceX, Teesta andLeos at would combine to account for over US$20 billion ofrequired investment capital and add upwards of 40Tbps ofsupply.”

According to the report, NGSO-HTS demand, todayanchored by O3b, is expected to grow at an average rate of

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40 percent annually, with at least one LEO-HTS constellationanticipated to be launched within the forecast period.

Euroconsult states that HTS capacity lease revenues areanticipated to exceed US$6 billion by 2025, generating morethan US$36 billion in aggregate revenues during 2017-2025,despite lower capacity prices and increasing commoditisation.Consumer broadband services in North America are expectedto remain the single largest driver, consuming 1,200Gbps ofcapacity by 2025. Meanwhile, civil government and enterprisenetworks should grow at a CAGR of 33 percent to 555Gbpsby 2025, while cellular backhaul and trunking is expected toreach more than 475Gbps by 2025, growing at an even fasterrate due to low-cost 3G and 4G backhaul solutions. Finally,demand in the aeronautical and maritime mobility markets isanticipated to reach a combined leased capacity of 480Gbpsby 2025.

Northern Sky Research (NSR) holds similar marketexpectations. Its ‘Global Satellite Capacity Supply & Demand,14th Edition (GSCSD14)’ reports that, despite a decline ofmore than US$2 billion in annual FSS revenues driven by C-band and Ku-band declines, HTS revenues will increase bya factor of 10 between 2016 and 2026, producing a US$17billion annual market by 2026. NSR expects HTS capacity toexceed 17Tbps by 2026, with around 60 percent of thatcapacity coming from one or more LEO-HTS constellations,and 7Tbps coming from GEO-HTS, primarily on Ka-band.

Accordingly, the satellite industry will find itself in manypositions where growth needs to be scalable, and operatorsmust find an effective way to sell much more capacity thanpreviously. “This will lead to operators forging closer ties totelcos, service providers, integrators, etc. - basically,companies who have the infrastructure to move a lot ofcapacity,” said Blaine Curcio, NSR Principal Analyst andreport author. “I believe that SoftBank - one of the world’slargest telcos - investing US$1.4 billion into OneWeb, andthe company’s subsequent interest in Intelsat, is not the lasttime we will see a telco looking at a satellite operator as astrategic asset in a world increasingly based on globalconnectivity. Though it certainly is a vote of confidence forthe industry.”

SKY Perfect JSAT invests in LEO-HTSNGSO-HTS is proving to be a real draw for some of the majorsatellite operators, with SES famously acquiring O3bNetworks, a medium Earth orbit (MEO) constellation of 12Ka-band HTS in August 2016. An additional eight MEOsatellites are planned to augment the existing constellationand meet demand, with four due for launch in 2018, and fourin 2019. Similarly, Intelsat was set to merge with OneWeb,which in July 2017 inaugurated the first assembly line inToulouse, France, for its Ultra-high throughput LEO satellites,however, this deal was terminated in June 2017 after Intelsat’s


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shareholders were unable to reach an agreement on theexchange offer.

Most recently, in May 2017, it was announced that SKYPerfect JSAT Corporation (SJC) had entered into anagreement to invest in LeoSat, which plans to launch aconstellation of up to 108 LEO-HTS to provide the fastest,most secure and widest coverage data network in the world.The unique HTS architecture includes inter-satellite laser linkswhich create an optical backbone in space, negating the needto hop between Earth stations, and delivering gigabit persecond data delivery.

The investment will enable SJC to pursue new businessoppor tunities in the data and mobility markets intelecommunications, enterprise, maritime and governmentsectors. The LeoSat constellation’s unique features areexpected to prove useful for 4G and 5G backhauling,delivering secure networks to banking foreign offices,providing ‘enormous’ bandwidth for the energy and maritimesectors, ensuring cr it ical back up for emergencycommunications, and enabling Internet access in remotecommunities.

“SJC sees the strategic importance of aggressivelyparticipating in the LEO/HTS business and we see the LeoSatsolution as a key opportunity to opening up new marketsand delivering business growth,” said Koki Koyama, SeniorManaging Executive Officer of SJC. “With the current andfuture growth of data traffic and the unique nature of theLeoSat system and its focus on the business market, webelieve there will be very strong demand for the LeoSatsolution. This investment and development partnership withLeoSat will allow SJC to expand and complement our existingGEO satellite services and beyond by enabling us to respondto customer needs which are not being met by today’stechnology.”

LeoSat is currently working with Thales Alenia Space tofinalise the manufacturing plan for the production of the entireconstellation.

SES launches first HTSWhile SES’s first HTS capacity came with the acquisition ofO3b networks as detailed above, the company has sincelaunched its own HTS, SES-15, on 18 May 2017 withArianespace from French Guiana.

The hybrid SES-15 satellite combines wide Ku-bandbeams with Ku-band spot beams and connectivity gatewaysin Ka-band. From its 129 degrees West position, SES-15provides coverage over North America, Mexico and CentralAmerica, stretching from Arctic Alaska to the South ofPanama, and from Hawaii to the Caribbean, and will deliverservices to the aeronautical sector, maritime, governmentand VSAT networks. Coverage was designed to allow airlinepassengers full, seamless HTS coverage from New York toHawaii, or from Alaska to Mexico. The satellite carries a WideArea Augmentation System (WAAS) hosted payload that willenable the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to augmentthe Global Positioning Systems (GPS) with the goal ofimproving accuracy, integrity and availability for the aviationindustry.

The launch of SES-12, originally expected to be SES’sfirst GEO-HTS with a launch in the first half of 2017, has nowbeen pushed back to the first quarter of 2018, reportedly.Like SES-15, SES-12 will deliver a combination of wide andspot beams in Ku-band, with coverage of key areas in theAsia-Pacific region. SES-14, another Airbus Defence andSpace Eurostar E3000 model satellite like SES-12, will alsofeature a mixture of wide and spot beams in Ku-band, withcoverage over the Americas and North Atlantic, and has alaunch date in the first quarter of 2018.

Looking ahead, in September 2016, SES ordered SES-17 from Thales Alenia Space. Due for launch in 2020, the all-electric HTS will complement the company’s existingcoverage with almost 200 Ka-band spot beams over theAmericas and the Atlantic Ocean region.

Thaicom builds upon IPSTAR 1 legacyThaicom changed the world when it launched the first HTS,IPSTAR 1, in 2005. The SSL-built satellite has 45Gbps ofcapacity and was designed to provide Internet services overthe Asia-Pacific region, with speeds of 6Mbps down and4Mbps up.

The company’s latest HTS project was announced inOctober 2016. Thaicom’s subsidiary, International SatelliteCompany Limited (ISC), entered into a satellite procurementcontract with China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC)for US$208 million. The satellite will have 53Gbps ofthroughput via 37GHz of Ka-band capacity, and will provideservices over the Asia-Pacific region. The launch is expectedby the end of 2019.

“There is a growing demand for broadband services inthe future, which will lead to a lot of competition and interestingdevelopments. But we believe that there continues to be astrong market for GEO satellite enabled broadband services.Thus, we continue to invest in our broadband programme,”Patompob (Nile) Suwansiri, CCO of Thaicom, told SatelliteEvolution. “IPSTAR was the first HTS in the world and sinceits launch in 2005, our name has become synonymous withsatellite broadband services in Asia-Pacific. We want tocontinue to build upon this legacy.”

Intelsat advances EpicNG fleetFor many in the industry, it’s impossible to think about HTSwithout the minding flitting to the Intelsat EpicNG platform.When completed, the platform will deliver global coveragewith HTS technology based on open architecture, engineered

SES-15 provides coverage over North America, Mexico andCentral America





for backwards compatibility, utilising C, Ku and Ka-bands witha mixture of wide beams, spot beams and frequency reusetechnology.

Intelsat EpicNG services were first launched in March 2016with Intelsat 29e at 310 degrees East, providing coverageover the Americas, the Caribbean, Eastern United States andthe North Atlantic region. Consumers from every major enduser market, including government, defence, aviation,maritime, enterprise and broadcast have already signed upto the service. Next, in January 2017, in-orbit testing wascompleted for the second EpicNG satellite, Intelsat 33e.Operating from 60 degrees East, Intelsat 33e providescoverage over Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific,Mediterranean and Indian Ocean regions. Meanwhile,February 2017 saw the launch of Intelsat 32e to 317 degreesEast – the satellite will overlay certain beams of Intelsat 29e,increasing the throughput available in the high-traffic areasover the Caribbean and North Atlantic routes.

More recently, in July 2017, Intelsat 35e was launched todeliver coverage over the Americas, the Caribbean, Europeand Africa from its orbital position at 325.5 degrees East,

replacing Intelsat 903, which will be redeployed to anotherposition by the end of 2017.

“The successful launch of Intelsat 35e is a major milestonein our business plan for 2017, furthering the footprint andresilience of our Intelsat EpicNG infrastructure,” said StephenSpengler, Chief Executive Officer at Intelsat. “With eachIntelsat EpicNG launch, we advance our vision of creating aglobal, high performance for our customers that will unlocknew growth opportunities in applications including mobility,wireless infrastructure and private data networks. As wefurther our innovations with respect to ground infrastructureand managed service offerings, like IntelsatOne Flex, we aretransforming the role of satellite in the telecommunicationslandscape.”

Finally, at the end of September 2017, Intelsat launchedIntelsat 37e, the first all-digital satellite to offer full, highresolution interconnectivity between C, Ku and Ka-bands foruse in wireless backhaul, enterprise VSAT, government andmobility networks. According to reports, the C-band payloadpresents a comprehensive mix of high-power spot and widebeams, designed to deliver additional services and improved


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throughput. The Ku- and Ka-band steerable beams, whichcan be positioned as needed, have been added to increasenetwork access and support high-demand areas forgovernment and commercial mobility applications. They willcomplement the extensive Ku-band multi-spot beamcoverage. In addition, Intelsat 37e improves the resiliency ofthe IntelsatOne Flex managed platform, bringing additionalthroughput to support enterprise, broadband, governmentand mobility applications in the Americas, Africa and Europe.

“Intelsat 37e is a powerful addition to our award-winningIntelsat EpicNG network. It brings new technology andresilience as we continue to deploy the first, all-digital, high-throughput satellite system,” said Spengler. “Intelsat 37efeatures enhanced power sharing technology and steerablebeams, which bring additional flexibility to meeting regionaland application requirements over the life of the satellite.Intelsat 37e reflects our multi-band, open architecturephilosophy. Our overarching goal is to offer satellite servicesthat unlock high-demand applications such as mobility andwireless infrastructure, supporting the growth of ourcustomers.”

Intelsat will complete its global footprint in 2018 withHorizons 3e.

Eutelsat launches EUTELSAT 172BAs a well-established satellite operator, it was only naturalthat Eutelsat was one of the first to adopt HTS technology. Infact, the company launched Europe’s first HTS, KA-SAT, in2012. The 90Gbps satellite uses 82 Ka-band spot beams todeliver high speed Internet.

Eutelsat launched its most recent HTS, EUTELSAT 172B,on 2 June 2017. The satellite is the first high-power all-electrictelecommunications satellite to be constructed in Europe, byAirbus Defence and Space. With C, Ku and high throughputKa-band payloads, Eutelsat’s coverage will be enhanced overChina and the Pacific Islands once fully operational.EUTELSAT 172B will also provide coverage over the NorthPacific Rim to serve aircraft travelling between the USA andAsia; Panasonic Avionics has already signed a long-termagreement for this capacity.

“We’re building HTS with multi beam coverage for differentregions. This is bringing down the cost of capacity to a pointwhere we can provide services to end users at prices which

are competitive with terrestrial telecommunications networks,”Jean-François Fenech, CEO of Eutelsat Asia, told SatelliteEvolution. “In Europe, service providers using ourinfrastructure are proposing connectivity for around Euro30/month, in line with the price of terrestrial alternatives. Thishas allowed us to capture a great deal of the unserved areas.We are now replicating this model in other regions of theworld, notably in Russia, Sub-Saharan Africa and LatinAmerica.”

ViaSat plans global HTS coverageGlobal broadband services and technology company ViaSataugmented its capabilities with the launch of its first HTS,ViaSat-1, in 2012. This capacity has been used to provideKa-band services over North America and Hawaii, deliveringExceed Internet in the US, and Xplornet in Canada.

ViaSat has since augmented its HTS capacity with thelaunch of ViaSat-2 in June 2017, which will provide both highcapacity bandwidth and wide coverage over Ka-bandfrequencies, as well as the flexibility to move bandwidth towhere it’s required. The satellite will provide double thebandwidth economics advantage of ViaSat-1, double thethroughput, and provide seven times the coverage. Areas ofcoverage include North America, Central America, theCaribbean and part of northern South America and theprimary aeronautical and maritime routes across the AtlanticOcean. Indeed, ViaSat-2 is the company’s first step towardspreading its high-capacity coverage worldwide for fixedbroadband and mobility services for aviation and maritime.

Going forwards, ViaSat plans to develop its ViaSat-3platform, a system of three satellites that will deliver a globalbroadband network with enough capacity to deliver anaffordable, high-speed, high-quality Internet and videostreaming service. ViaSat announced the Preliminary DesignReview (PDR) for the first two of its ViaSat-3 satellites inNovember 2016. Each ViaSat-3 satellite is expected to delivermore than 1Tbps of capacity, and will have the flexibility todynamically direct capacity to where customers are located.The first two ViaSat-3 satellites will provide Ka-band coverageover the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, whilea third ViaSat-3 satellite is ultimately planned for the Asia-Pacific region, completing ViaSat’s global service coverage.The first ViaSat-3 satellite is expected to launch in 2019.

Inmarsat achieves delayed Global Xpress satellite launchInmarsat’s Global Xpress (GX), which, according to thecompany, was the first service that provided full, globalcoverage with capacity from a single satellite operator,providing a consistent network service, entered full globalcommercial service in December 2015. The GX constellationconsists of three Ka-band I-5 class HTS, which between themprovide full global coverage. The I-5 satellites use acombination of fixed narrow spot beams that deliver highspeeds through compact terminals, and six steerable beamsso that additional capacity can be directed in real-time towhere it’s needed.

Inmarsat ordered a fourth I-5 satellite from Boeing for theGX constellation to augment existing capabilities. The I-5 F4satellite was initially expected to launch at the end ofDecember 2016, but the launch was delayed due to thebacklog in SpaceX’s launch programme following the launchLaunch of Eutelsat 172B. Photo courtesy Arianespace





pad explosion in September 2016. As such, the I-5 F4 satellitewas successfully launched by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 on 15 May2017; once fully operational, it will provide additional capacityfor Global Xpress users on land, at sea, and in the air.

Spacecom invests in AMOS-17Israel’s Spacecom, operator of the AMOS fleet of satellitesand delivering services to Asia, Europe, the Middle East andAfrica, is one the latest companies to announce a new HTSproject. The company famously lost its first HTS, the AMOS-6 satellite, in a SpaceX launchpad explosion which alsodestroyed the Falcon 9 rocket it was due to launch on.

In December 2016, SpaceX announced that it had enteredinto a US$161 million satellite procurement agreement withBoeing Satellite Systems International. AMOS-17 will deliverKa, Ku and C-band services with a combination of broadregional beams and high throughput spot beams to maximisespectral efficiency. Operating from 17 degrees East, AMOS-17 will expand Spacecom’s coverage over Africa, the MiddleEast and Europe for an expected in-orbit lifetime of 15 years.The satellite is due for launch in 2019.

“AMOS-17 will be a multi-band high-throughput, state-of-the-art satellite that will provide reliable solutions and offer asignificant competitive advantage for our customers,” saidDavid Pollack, President and CEO of Spacecom. “We arepleased to partner with Boeing in making this importantaddition to our fleet. The Boeing satellite will provide a greatfit for Spacecom’s expansion strategy, offering an innovativedesign with capabilities that provide flexible service offeringsto meet the growing demands of our customers. AMOS-17will enhance our capabilities as a growing and highly capablesatellite operator.”

Yahsat looks to Brazil with Al Yah 3YahSat is one of the few medium-sized operators to havetaken advantage of the new capabilities that HTS bring to

the table. Following on from the success of Ka-band HTSYahsat 1B, Yahsat is currently preparing for the launch of AlYah 3, an all Ka-band HTS with 60 spot beams based onOrbital ATK’s GEOStar-3 platform. Al Yah 3 will expandYahsat’s coverage to Brazil and 19 new markets in Africa,doubling its reach upon its launch, which has been pushedback to the third quarter of 2017. Around 10Gbps, or 18 spotbeams, of Al Yah 3’s capacity will be used for Connect Africa,Eutelsat’s strategy to deliver commercial broadband serviceto Sub-Saharan African nations by 2019. Up to 16 spot beamson Yahsat 1B will also be used for the project.

Kacific Broadband Satellites orders first HTSKacific is one of the latest companies to join the HTSrevolution. It plans to address the endemic lack of high-speedand affordable broadband in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.The company closed a US$147 million financing round inlate 2016 to cover the satellite, launch service, groundsystems and other project costs.

Kacific ordered its first HTS, Kacific-1, from Boeing inFebruary 2017. The condominium satellite will be shared withJCSAT-18, ordered by SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation. Kacific-1 will deliver broadband throughput via 57 Ka-band narrowbeams, each with up to 1.25Gbps of capacity. The beamswere designed to cover 20 Pacific and Southeast Asiannations. So far, capacity has been sold on 51 of the 57 beams,with sold capacity exceeding 70 percent on most beamsalready. Based on the early sales success in the Asia-Pacificregion, Kacific is now preparing plans for follow-on HTS.

“With the launch of Kacific-1 in 2019, people in areascurrently lacking affordable high-speed Internet will be able toaccess online education, healthcare and public services, andgrow their local economies. Delivering Internet speeds over100Mbps on low cost, small form factor terminals, will helpconnect the dots of South East Asia and the Pacific to thedigital world,” said Christian Patouraux, Kacific’s CEO.

Inmarsat I-5 F1 and I-5-F2 in Boeing facility




Cities of the Future


Smart cities must become clevererabout connectivityWhilst the world’s population continues to grow and urbanisation increases, society willincreasingly rely on communications technology to help overcome its many challenges; one ofthese will be making cities ‘smart.’ Hakan Ekmen, Chief Executive at P3 communications GmbH,outlines the steps that must be taken to enable smart cities to develop in a way that makes sensefor planners, consumers and businesses alike.

According to the United Nations, by 2050 nine billionpeople will live on Earth, of which 70 percent will be in cities.This demographic change, together with globalisation, climatechange and the need for greater efficiency in the use ofenergy, space, budgets and time, will force cities to come upwith more innovative and far-reaching solutions.

The smart city presents a positive vision of this future, inwhich the everyday lives of inhabitants are improved bytechnology in many different ways. Primarily it will be aquestion of connecting the infrastructure elements to eachother in order to exchange and use data to boost efficiencyin almost every facet of life.

Connecting to succeedConnected, integrated information and communicationtechnology is the foundation on which the smart city will bebuilt, with mobile connectivity right at its core. In the age ofthe connected car and smart transport management, the

ability of people and things to connect with other things whileon the move is vital.

The smart city will use mobile connectivity to provide newmodes of healthcare, green initiatives about energy andresource savings, enhanced waste management, increasedsafety, easier access to knowledge and better governmentalprocesses. This connectivity will bring increased efficiencyin the surveillance of buildings, automation of their heatingand cooling, as well as smart metering and the operation ofintelligent emissions control systems. Several West Europeancountries, for example, currently have large-scale energysaving schemes in preparation, requiring new in-housewireless connections for both industry and private homes.

Given this range of uses, the quality and reliability ofconnectivity will become critical to the smart city, making thereliable measurement and testing of telecommunicationnetworks and services indispensable. These networks mustdo what they say they will do. If the exchange of electronic

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data is to be secure, there must be faith in the system bywhich that vital information is transmitted.

The technology driversThe greatest facilitators of smart city development will bemachine-to-machine (M2M) and related Internet of Things

(IoT) technologies. Here the driver will be customer demandcreated by global companies offering applications that canbe adapted for local use. Cities that are supportive of IoTand have the connectivity to support it are likely to developsmart capabilities very quickly.

Yet connections must be reliable. As cities becomeincreasingly congested, local authorities will want to use IoTtechnologies to ease all their transport and traffic problemswith an integrated solution, in the process reducing the threatsto health from pollution. If there are gaps in the infrastructure,truly smart or driverless electric cars will not work becauseeither their automatic driving processes will be interrupted,or their owners will find the batteries constantly run out beforethey can find a charging point. Intelligent traffic managementsystems also require the interaction between vehicles andinfrastructure to be seamless if journeys are not to becometoo irksome or difficult.

Social changeSocial factors are also very important drivers. In mostcountries, the attractiveness of cities for young people andyounger families is increasing, yet they expect access to rapidtransport systems along with fast and stable mobileconnectivity. The increase in remote working or home officesis also an influential trend, reliant on broadband connections

Hakan Ekmen, Chief Executive atP3 communications GmbH

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which are secure and resilient.At the other end of the age-range, another very significant

factor will be the growing numbers of elderly residents. Asmanpower and resources are squeezed by pressure onservices, remote systems to supervise individual healthrequirements will certainly develop even further than theyhave today, built on the smart city’s capacity to provide stable,always-on, short-delay connections to a local health centreor hospital.

The growing sophistication of e-commerce businessesand the everyday reliance on social networking will be anotherset of strong drivers, along with the reorientation of youngeraudiences towards digital entertainment such as videogaming and streaming. All this makes fast and resilientconnectivity utterly essential.

The needs of businessIncreased use of cloud services by consumers and theexponential growth in the use of cloud-based big data andanalytics by enterprises will also be huge factors. City-basedenterprises using these services will demand good, stableand fast Internet connections to boost productivity, along withsmart transport, excellent entertainment and a higher qualityof life for their employees.

It is worth remembering that such tax-payers (corporateand individual) are of substantial importance for all successfulcities. Enterprises that feel they are missing out on productivityand competitiveness because a city is stuck with poor mobile

communications, will simply relocate, taking their taxablerevenues with them.

Measuring successThe success of smart cities will in large part be measured bythe extent to which they can offer fast, ubiquitous and utterlyreliable connectivity. It will be essential to the attraction ofnew businesses and tech-savvy, younger age-groups onwhich the smart city will depend. These educated and mobilecitizens will not tolerate bad connectivity, time-consuming andpoorly organised public transport, or traffic congestion andpollution. Nor will they want to live in a city incapable ofbenefiting from advances in energy-reduction technology andremote medicine. Increasingly, they also want to interact withlocal government by smartphone no matter where they are.

This will all require mobile communications services thatcan be shown to deliver the fast speeds and reliability thatbusinesses and consumers demand. It makes regular testingby respected benchmarking companies an integral part ofsmart city development. Without it the telecommunicationscompanies cannot identify gaps and inadequacies in theirservices, nor can businesses and consumers be fullyconfident that what they are being offered is what they wantand what they actually receive.

There may be many infrastructure hurdles to overcomein the next few years, but it will be the ability to demonstratereliable and fast connectivity that will give a community thebiggest advantage in the new era of smart cities.

Photo courtesy of jamesteohart/Shutterstock

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Satellite Interference

OmniAccess field engineer onboard

A passion for training: Keysolutions to combat satelliteinterferenceSatellite interference is a pressing concern for many in the industry, but today, there are manyoptions available to reduce or eliminate interference altogether. Training is key for tacklinginterference, as Martin Jarrold, Chief of International Programme Development at GVF,elaborates on here.

Since concern about satellite interference came to occupya primary position on the agenda of the satell itecommunications solution provider and user communities, theneed for Earth station terminal equipment installation traininghas been recognised as a core element among a range ofstrategies – both proactive and reactive – to prevent and tomitigate the growing interference problem, a problem which,in many – though not all – instances, has solutions thatengage the human factor.

Alerted to the scale of interference instances by ourmembership, GVF immediately took the lead and partneredwith the expertise of the satellite systems engineers at SatProfInc, setting-out on a path which today, over a decade later,has brought over 13,000 technicians into and through thecutting-edge training environment it has developed.

Having acted on the recognition that satellite interference– arising from inadequate antenna pointing practices and

related terminal installation techniques – was a problemcrying-out for a solution, with the entire range of the terminalinstaller’s necessary skill-set needing a body of onlinesimulation-based instructional material, testing proceduresand certification programmes – GVF response to theindustry’s call for action has evolved into a suite of trainingresources of comprehensive breadth, yet which continues togrow in scope.

Today’s GVF training environment covers not only course-by-course online installer training and certification, but alsooperator training and certification, together with opportunitiesfor organisations with a commitment to excellence in satellitecommunications to apply for GVF Accredited Organisationfor Training (GVF AO/T) status. Indeed, GVF training has nowgrown to encompass courses covering fixed VSAT, marinesatcoms, mobile/broadcast/SNG/auto-deploy, teleport/NOCoperations, engineering, and satellite business, technology,

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markets, sales support, and more, including enhancedtraining services, site licenses, and elevated access to theportfolio of training resources through a Knowledge Centresubscription scheme that makes available an extensive bodyof training resources for about the price of a cup of coffee aday.

The Certified Installer Database is another facet of theGVF training environment, one that enables the certificationcredentials of installer technicians to be confirmed on asearchable basis. This database shows everyone with GVFAdvanced or higher Certification who wishes (and ispermitted) to be listed.

Many of GVF’s member organisations have becomeregular users of the training portfolio, companies which spanthe delivery of satellite communications solutions in theenergy, maritime, government, retail, and numerous othermarkets. This article is based on dialogues between ChrisLynn, Business Development Director with Satprof, Inc. andsome of these member organisations, based in and operatingin some disparate parts of the globe and serving a range ofdifferent user markets. But, these organisations share apassionate view that training is key to providing anunparalleled customer experience and to commercialcompetitive success, variously focusing on combinations ofthe value of a common technical standard and standardisedinstallation protocols, of inspiring customer confidencethrough providing the best possible service, and of investingin employee skills and staff retention.

RigNet: Creating a better customer experienceRigNet provides satellite and other communications servicesto the oil and gas industry, as well as to the maritime sectorand others, with solutions ranging from fully-managed voiceand data networks to applications that include videoconferencing, crew welfare, asset and weather monitoringand real-time data services in remote areas. The company’sresponses to the energy sector downturn have included bothdiversification – acquiring Inmarsat’s Enterprise Energybusiness unit in 2014, and TECNOR of Mexico in 2016 – andstrategies to ensure delivery of the best possible customerexperience to its more than 500 global clients.

“Our move to implement a global organizationaldesign…is creating a better customer experience; it’s creatingmore commonality in how we perform; and therefore moreconsistent level of service to our customers around theworld… Our two big costs are related to bandwidth and peopleof course – and people make our business work,” saidRigNet’s President & CEO, Steven Pickett. For the company’s[then] Director of Network Operations, Eric Schuele, and hiscolleagues, this meant making sure that more than 80 globalfield technicians, and 50 or so Network Operations Centre(NOC) staff received a consistent level of training in VSATinstallation, maintenance and troubleshooting, providing allthe tools needed to deliver the best possible service tocustomers.

Site licence-based access to the entire library of GVF’sonline subscription training courses has made availablecourses covering basic introduction to satell itecommunications (suitable for non-technical staff) to theinstallation and support of specific brands of fixed, auto-deploy, and marine terminals. According to Schuele, “Since

we made the GVF training part of our standard onboardingprocess for new employees, we have seen a markedimprovement in the ability of our Tier 1 NOC technicians tofix customer problems quickly. This has translated into happiercustomers and greater efficiency.”

ITC Global: Utilising a common technical standardThe Vice President for Global Operations at ITC Global, MikeNeugebauer, says that “GVF is now the standard VSATtraining curriculum in our industry.” More than 80 ITC Globalteam members are GVF trained, reflecting the company’spush to equip the team with a solid base of technical skillsthat will enhance the value they deliver to the company’sglobal customers in the energy, mining, and maritime markets.“It’s important in our business that we have a commontechnical framework and that we are speaking the sametechnical language,” says Neugebauer. “The GVF training hassupplied us with a common technical standard to employacross the organisation, and now recognising this valuableresource, we have every new Field and Network OperationsCenter Technician complete the GVF coursework.”

Current training contract provisions gives the company adedicated, branded web portal, which includes trainingmaterials and offers flexibility in preparing new staff tocomplete certifications – monitoring training course progressby students, and making training expenses clear andpredictable. For the future, Neugebauer wants to increase

Photo courtesy of RigNet





the number of staff with GVF certifications, and the numberof accredited trainers within the organisation.

Expedition Communications: Minimising time spent onsiteAfter considerable experience in providing satellitecommunication in remote parts of the world and in installingand operating satcom systems for USA and other governmentagencies, Dean Eldridge started Expedition CommunicationsLLC to perform engineering, installation and repair of VSATterminals across the United States and overseas with overtwenty full-time staff and a pool of over 200 contractors whosupport end-users around the world. Eldridge says hiscustomers pay a fixed rate for each installation, so it’s in thecompany’s interest to minimise the time spent on site, withinstallers doing a quality job the first time, thus limitingmaintenance visits – a factor of particular importance wheninstalling VSAT systems in some of the world’s mostchallenging locations and in environments from artic latitudesto the tropics to the desert.

Expedition has, therefore, developed a rigorous andstandardised installation protocol requiring technicians tofollow the installation procedures described in courses whichtogether cover key fundamentals – suitable for entry-levelstaff – and the range of practical tips, techniques, andknowledge that fixed-VSAT field technicians and installersneed to perform a high-quality, reliable installation job.

“We started putting our people through the GVF trainingthree-or-four years ago,” says Eldridge. Today, he is not yetdemanding GVF certification before he hires a contractor;but he predicts customer pressure for ever-improving service

will mean that day is not far off, especially when his customersrealise they can check the credentials of the installationtechnicians he supplies on the GVF Certified InstallerDatabase.

Globecomm Europe: The problem is lack of knowledgeMarlon Li-a-young manages the Technical Operations Centre(TOC) of Globecomm Europe near Amsterdam and hassubscribed to GVF training courses since 2014. Havingrecently signed up for a site license, all his dozen-plus TOCstaff have access to all the 14-16 courses they typically needto provide support to remote installers. The courses taken byhis staff include not only the core skills needed for VSAToperations, but also how to install and use specific equipmentsuch as SeaTel and Intellian marine terminals, and iDirectmodems, so that they can advise installers who call in withproblems.

According to Li-a-young, only about five percent ofinstallations need detailed and intensive technical support,but these cases can be very time-consuming. “Sometimespeople have misconfigured equipment, but often – especiallywhen customers try to do their own installations – the problemis lack of knowledge.” Li-a-young would like to see morecontract installers going through the training and getting aprofessional certification. For his TOC employees, he hasmade it part of the company’s standard procedure to ensureeverybody has the same basic level of knowledge, and hasseen quicker problem resolution as a result.

Intellian: Growing training investmentsAlso in The Netherlands is the base of antenna supplierIntellian’s European operations. There, another enthusiasticGVF subscriber, Olaf Eikelenboom, has spoken about hiscompany’s growing training investments. “Most of ourcustomers, like Inmarsat and Marlink, do their owninstallations and train their own installers. But increasingnumbers of customers want us to install their completesystems, which includes 19” racks and antennas, as well asthe smaller dealers sometimes need extra hand-holding.”

Eikelenboom, who heads Training & Development at thecompany, took the lead in pushing GVF training, and nowhas 42 Intellian employees, mainly technicians, enrolledworldwide under a site license. “A typical installation is ‘plug& play,’ but if anything goes wrong, that’s when our peopleneed to have the overall system knowledge that the GVFtraining delivers so well,” he says. The company providesonline system training for dealers and service partners, aswell as internal and external classroom system trainingworldwide.

Talia: Training is mission-criticalTalia is another big believer in training and was an earlyadopter of GVF’s simulation-based training courses andbecoming a GVF-approved training partner in 2015 whenthe company set up the Talia Academy, with locations inLondon, Germany, Iraq and Dubai. The Academy uses theonline GVF training as an introduction to its instructor-ledVSAT courses, which cover topics ranging from the basics ofsatcom to the installation and support of iDirect and Comsatterminals. The Academy also works with partners to deliverother communications training such as Cisco and Motorola.Photo courtesy of Talia





Talia provides communications across the Americas,Europe, Africa and parts of Asia using a variety of satelliteoperators and fibre communications suppliers. According toVice President of Human Resources & Corporate AffairsSusan Berryman, “Training is a mission-critical part of ourbusiness. We quote it in our proposals, we make it part of ouremployee on-boarding process, and we encourage ourcustomers to use it. Talia is licensed to operate in Afghanistan,Iraq and South Sudan – and those are countries where it’sparticularly important that our customers have enoughknowledge to be self-sufficient.”

Susan Berryman wants to see the GVF certificationsachieve the same level of recognition and ubiquity as CiscoCertified Technician and Network Professional qualifications.“We want our people to feel we are helping with their careerdevelopment, and we want our customers to have confidencein our people,” she adds.

OmniAccess: Providing effective remote supportOmniAccess S.L. is a leading marine network service providerto European superyachts and cruise ships. Whilst thecompany began by offering WiFi networks and onboard ITservices for large yachts, it subsequently branched intomarine VSAT service provisioning and the company’s globalnetwork now expands over seven uplink sites to provideworldwide coverage with over 25 satellite networks.

Omniaccess’ main teleport has a team of 20 engineers torun its 24/7 NOC. Having a teleport with over 18 uplinkantennas (ranging from 2.4m to 7.6m), the NOC, a high-enddatacenter and a whole array of stabilised antennas makethis an excellent venue for training.

It is Training Manager Andreu Mateu’s job to ensure thatOmniAccess’s field technicians have the skills necessary tosolve customer problems onboard ship, and to ensure its NOC

Photo courtesy of Expedition Communications

technicians can provide effective remote support. Initially, withjust a few of the company’s staff having taken GVF trainingcourses – covering the basics of satellite communicationsand also the installation and operation of SeaTel, iDirect andIntellian terminals – starting in 2015, the company theninvested in a site license in 2016, giving all staff access tothe GVF Knowledge Centre.

According to Mateu, “We are putting all our new hiresthrough the GVF Introduction to Satellite Communicationscourse, and we encourage our technical staff to do theadvanced training, and to take the HOST (Hands On SkillsTest) exam and get certified.” The company has a qualifiedHOST examiner in-house, and sees the certification processas good for employee retention, as well as being a source ofcompetitive advantage.

To support customers far from home, OmniAcesssupplements its own staff with sub-contractors in differentports worldwide. These are currently selected usingreferences and previous experience, but Mateu is also lookingfor evidence of training courses taken, and certificationsgained. “We’ve also started offering a three-day hands-onVSAT training course in Palma,” says Mateu.

Advanced opportunitiesThe GVF training community also offers active registeredstudents and subscribers automatic access to the ExpertsForum, which offers a platform for discussion about GVFtraining course content, as well as on engineering, technical,and business topics relating to all forms of satellitecommunications. A News, Downloads, and Resources facilityis available at https://gvf.org/training/resources.html and theGVF Training Newsletter is published throughout the year,with latest and past issues available at https://gvf.org/training-resources/gvf-training-news.html.



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Q&A Cobham SATCOM

Cobham SATCOM providesdependable communications andinternet access anywhere underthe most demanding conditions.

Its satellite and radio commun-ication terminals perform in themost challenging and remoteenvironments on land, at sea andin the air.

The company designs andmanufactures these high perfor-mance products under theAVIATOR, EXPLORER, SAILORand Sea Tel brands providingcustomers with outstandingperformance, value and supportthrough our global sales andservice network.

Delivering value to theend-userCobham SATCOM was created in 2012 under Cobham plcfollowing the acquisition of Thrane & Thrane, and today providesdependable communications and Internet access anywhere inthe world, with terminals operating on land, at sea, or in the air.Its AVIATOR, EXPLORER, SAILOR and Sea Tel brand productsare well-known throughout the industry for their reliance andoutstanding performance. Here, Amy Saunders speaks withCasper Jensen, Senior Vice President, Head of CobhamSATCOM, to find out more about the company’s latestachievements, market presence, and expectations for thefuture.

Casper Jensen, Senior VicePresident, Head of CobhamSATCOM

United Airlines have installed Cobham’s AVIATOR 300D system for participationin the evaluation of SB-S

Q&A Cobham SATCOM

Question: Can you provide anoverview of Cobham SATCOM’sdevelopment, from its founding towhere it stands today?Casper Jensen: Cobham plc has since2001 purchased four independentcompanies developing and manufact-ur ing satell ite communicationsequipment for various sectors. The mostrecent, Thrane & Thrane, was acquiredin 2012, and subsequently all foursatcom units were merged into onebusiness unit called Cobham SATCOM.

We have developed our maritimeportfolio significantly, to include anextensive range of class-leading satcomsystems with focus on L-band MSS andVSAT on all frequencies, in addition toGMDSS solutions and othercommunication systems for maritimeusers in all sectors. We have along theway become well established as a

satcom antenna manufacturer in theaviation sector and for users on land. Ourfirst system for an aircraft was launchedin 1992 - the Aero-C system consistingof a 2 MCU SDU, combined HPA/LNAand the Sensor Systems LGA - and ourAVIATOR product portfolio is now wellestablished as a technology-leader forthe Inmarsat SwiftBroadband service.On land, we manufacture antennas forInmarsat BGAN and all VSAT servicesunder the EXPLORER brand.

Question: What can you tell us aboutCobham SATCOM’s market presence,in terms of end user applications andgeographic uptake?Casper Jensen: Our reach is globalacross all our business units, land, seaand air. AVIATOR products are used onbusiness jets and commercial airliners,but we also have an offering for UAVsegments. EXPLORER BGAN and VSATterminals are used in a wide range ofindustries, with core markets beingbroadcasting, emergency responders,NGOs and aid agencies, and defence.

In the maritime market, our SAILORand Sea Tel antennas are used on shipsof all types and size, from tankers andcontainer vessels through to offshoresupport vessels, oil platforms andworkboats. You will also find manyluxury vessels, yachts and motorboatswith SAILOR antennas on board.

Question: Where do you see the mostopportunity for growth goingforwards?

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Q&A Cobham SATCOM

Cobham SATCOM - EXPLORER 8120 vehicle mounted

Casper Jensen: While we haveestablished ourselves as a key playerin our core verticals, there are still somevery interesting growth areas goingforward. Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband-Safety for aircraft is especiallyimportant, as it will allow our AVIATORSwiftBroadband technology to becomean integral part of cockpit connectivityin commercial aircraft. We are alreadyworking with major aircraftmanufacturers such as Airbus to makethis happen.

In the maritime arena, we see strongpotential for medium sized VSAT andnew small VSAT antennas. Over the last18 months we have introduced severalnew 60 cm SAILOR VSAT antennas.Initially, these were to leverage new Ka-band high throughput satellite (HTS)services. The spot beam configurationof HTS has made smaller antennasmore viable for global services, as itreduces the challenge of signal drop-off towards the edge of the footprint.Maritime customers benefit particularlyfrom applying smaller antennas asinstallation costs can be significantlyreduced, while more vessels canchoose VSAT when they may not havehad the space for a one metre antenna.

The North American and Europeanmaritime satcom market is very mature,having led the way in adoption of VSAT.We are now seeing APAC, South EastAsia and South America starting tocatch-up though, as they see thefinancial and performance benefits ofmoving away from legacy L-bandsolutions to fixed monthly price, globalKu or Ka-band VSAT.

The land mobile market is verysteady, and growth is mostly driven bynew services and technology. As anexample, we are expecting a stronguptake on the new EXPLORER 8100, abrand new stabilised, auto-acquire,drive-away antenna system. For use onKa-band networks such as Eutelsat KA-SAT and Inmarsat Global Xpress, thesystem is ideal for news gatheringvehicles, where it can offer unparalleledcomms-on-the-pause performance andunmatched pointing accuracy, ensuringhigh-quality connectivity that is availableeven when other antennas would havelost their connection to the satellite. Thisis achieved by unique Dynamic PointingCorrection technology, which can adjustin milliseconds to compensate for thevehicle it is installed on rocking on its

suspension. The result is thatbroadcasters can transmit live, highdefinition multimedia withoutinterruption from anywhere in the worldand in almost any weather conditions.

Question: Inflight connectivity isbecoming increasingly ubiquitousthroughout airlines the world over.What trends do you see regarding theimplementation of this technology,and how can airlines ensure theydeliver a market-leading service?Casper Jensen: We expect to see amajor drive for standardisation of theequipment, because current cost levelsof associated equipment makeswitching between service providersexorbitantly expensive. Cobham ismonitoring developments on this frontclosely, along with technologicaldevelopments of the varioussubsystems that makes up a Ku/Kaband cabin connectivity solution, andis preparing for a market entry at thatstage.

There is also a growing demandfrom airlines for wireless connectivity inthe cockpit for tasks such as air trafficcontrol, aircraft operation and cabincrew operations and to support a hostof applications from enabling on-lineuse of modern EFBs (Electronic FlightBag) to accessing real-time weatherrepor ts, fl ight planning and char tinformation.

We have addressed this require-ment for continuous secure dataexchange between the airlines’ groundoperations and their aircraft and met thetrend for smaller, lighter, less expensivesystems that are still feature rich. Theanswer was the development of a

superior next generation solution,designed to resist cyber threats for thenext 20 years – the Cobham SATCOMAVIATOR S Series, an ARINC 781compliant compact and lightweightsatcom system. It enables Inmarsat’snew SwiftBroadband-Safety (SB-S) IPdata service which includes theencapsulation of ACARS messages(CPDLC and ADS-C) as well as safetyvoice, secure and plain IP data.

The Cobham SATCOM systemfeatures the most advanced securityarchitecture and domain segregationmeasures available in a two LRUsolution with a two MCU sized CompactSatellite Data Unit (CSDU - the radio)and HELGA (an antenna, high poweramplifier and diplexer, all in oneenclosure), linked through a standardlow cost coaxial cable. Suitable for allsingle-aisle and wide-bodied aircraft,AVIATOR S is smaller and lighter andhas a lower cost of ownership than anyother Inmarsat system, including airtimecosts. The total system weight is lessthan 6kg (13.2lbs) in the AVIATOR 200Sconfiguration.

The advantages of IP-based datacommunications have been verifiedthrough evaluations of the ACARS overIP over SBB on a fleet of HawaiianAirlines aircraft during the past 12months. As part of these evaluations, ithas also recently been announced thatthe Cobham and Inmarsat solution hasenabled in-air connected EFBs for thefirst time.

Major airframers have selected thenew Cobham SATCOM systems, withCobham providing its AVIATOR 200Sand 700S for the Airbus A320 and A330fleets, while it was also recently

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Q&A Cobham SATCOM

announced that the 200S will becertified on the Airbus A350 XWB. Inaddition, Cobham is in discussion withBoeing about establishing TSA’s forAVIATOR S on new airframes. Furthersupporting Cobham’s development oftechnologies to meet the future needsof the aviation community, UnitedAir l ines have installed Cobham’sAVIATOR 300D system for participationin the evaluation of SB-S, whileHawaiian Air l ines has selectedAVIATOR 350D and SB-S for its newAirbus A321neo fleet.

AVIATOR S will enter thequalification phase later this year andbe certified for flight through an EASATSO by mid-2018.

Question: We’ve seen a fair amountof notable consolidation in themaritime communications sectorlately. What is your assessment ofthis trend, and its impact on CobhamSATCOM?Casper Jensen: Indeed, there hasbeen some consolidation, and whilethat means fewer service providers ingeneral, we feel that it can have apositive effect on the market. Fewer butlarger players committed to meeting thecommunication needs of maritime userscould result in more investment in newservices, or tangible efforts to offer more

value to the customers. Competition inmaritime satcom services is high, whichcan only benefit the end-user.

Regardless of how many serviceproviders there are in the market, weremain committed to them as partners.Our goal is to continue developing newand innovative solutions based on ourinsight into the user-needs in all ourverticals. Our aim is to enable highlyreliable communication services withclass-leading antenna technology thatnot only delivers performance, but leadsthe field in lifetime costs. OPEX is keyfor satcom service partners, and byproducing equipment that is easy andlow-cost to maintain, and that lastsregardless of how tough theenvironment is, we can help ourpartners to be more profitable, and inturn provide value to the end-user.

Question: We’re seeing a lot ofchange in the satcom industry rightnow, with new satellite and antennatechnology and standards allevolving. Which are the biggesttrends you’re observing right now,and how will Cobham SATCOMrespond?Casper Jensen: LEO and MEOconstellations using cutting-edgeCubeSat and SmallSat spacecraft arereally star ting to take shape and

opening up for new technologies andservices. Cobham is dedicated to beingpart of this movement, and have ourSea Tel tracking antennas suited for thissegment lowering the total cost ofownership of an LEO or MEO network,by significantly reducing powerconsumption, in addition to deliveringtangible savings on deployment andmaintenance. Uniquely, our solution isdelivered as a complete, integratedsystem including radome, antennacontroller, feeds and customer specificRF (BUC and LNB) in addition to a built-in auto-tracking feature, improving linkperformance and contributing to higherthroughput and availability of service forthe end-user.

We also see, that regardless ofvertical, industries and organisationsare looking to optimise their processesand workflows through digitisation. Ourcommitment is to help them achieve thisby providing antennas solutions thatincrease the availability of connectivityfor remote working environments, suchas ships, aircraft or vehicles working inthe field. Whether this is throughSAILOR and Sea Tel antennas enablingengine monitor ing for better fuelefficiency on a ship or enabling the so-called ‘Electronic Flight Bag’ used bypilots, availability of service is key. Thismakes it vital for satellite serviceproviders to choose equipment that isproven to offer the radio performanceand long-term durability required fordelivering reliable connectivity andvoice comms.

Question: In May 2017, CobhamSATCOM delivered its 50,000th

SAILOR FleetBroadband terminal.How has the SAILOR FleetBroadbandrange grown since its inception in2007, and what expectations do youhave for it in the future?Casper Jensen: SAILOR FleetBroadband has become the best-sellingInmarsat FleetBroadband by far in theten years since its launch. The portfolionow consists of SAILOR 500, 250 and150 FleetBroadband, to match theservice levels offered by Inmarsat. Wealso have the SAILOR Fleet Oneterminal which is based on the sametechnology platform. Our FleetBroadband terminals have evolved inline with Inmarsat’s developments andin general we have been first withbringing these to market, includingCobham SATCOM - EXPLORER 710, ultra-portable BGAN terminal

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Q&A Cobham SATCOM

Multi-Voice and 505 Emergency Calling.While the Ka-band Global Xpress is

the new generation service fromInmarsat, FleetBroadband continues tobe relevant as an integral part of it. So,despite being over 10 years old now,we still see a significant market forSAILOR FleetBroadband, and hope tobe hitting 60,000 terminals shippedsoon!

Question: What do you think CobhamSATCOM’s biggest achievementshave been in the last year, and whereis there room for improvement goingforwards?Casper Jensen: Our technologydevelopment continues apace and I amproud of the new products we haverealised across all of our marketverticals this year. But our work is alsoabout enabling our partners to offervalue to the end-user and to this end,we are not only focused on technology.One key area we are focused on isensuring that we can deliver on ourcustomers terms and on their deadlines.Consider the aviation market; a newcommercial aircraft takes years todesign and manufacture. Satcom is justone component of thousands, so anydelivery issues can have hugeramifications. Likewise, the mobilenature of ships means that they can beliterally anywhere, so organising thelogistics to install an antenna at a portof call can be challenging. We have towork very closely with our partners toship the equipment to be exactly whereit’s needed and when its needed. If aship has to wait in port it could cost tensof thousands of dollars extra. If it moveswithout a new antenna because of amissed delivery it could be without theservices it needs and indeed may notbe meeting international regulations.So, our commitment continues to be tomeet our customers timelines, andwhile we have always been focused onthis area, going forwards our partnersand their end-users will see us becomean even stronger force within thelogistics chain.

Question: What do you expectCobham SATCOM to achieve in therest of 2017 and 2018?Casper Jensen: There are a few thingswe’re looking forward to ‘completing.’Our first antenna for operation on thenew Iridium NEXT network for Iridium

Certus services, SAILOR 4300 will beready and shipping by the end of theyear. This will ensure that maritimeusers will have access to a class-leading antenna solution for when theservice comes online early in 2018.

EXPLORER 8100 is alreadyavailable for Eutelsat Ka-Sat and the GXversion will be ready for shipping beforethe end of the year, giving broadcastend-users the oppor tunity tosignificantly improve the quality ofconnectivity on their news gatheringvehicles using Inmarsat Global Xpressservices, with the benefits of our unique

Dynamic Pointing Correctiontechnology.

Going into 2018, we will concludethe development and qualification of theAVIATOR 200S for Inmarsat’sSwiftboadband-Safety service and haveour first Air Transport certification flight.While most aircraft won’t be gettingaccess to the service until 2019, nextyear will be critical to ensure that ouradvanced terminal, which has been inthe making for over five years, is readyto help revolutionise cockpitcommunication on commercial aircraftin the years to come.

Cobham SATCOM (aero) - cockpit - Cobham SATCOM are meeting the growingdemand from airlines for wireless connectivity in the cockpit

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LEO Constellations


LEO constellations and trackingchallengesKrystal Dredge, Director of Marketing, Matthew von Arx, Senior Mechanical Controls SystemsEngineer, and Ian Timmins, Principle RF Engineer at AvL Technologies explain the challenges ofthe new LEO constellations from a tracking point of view.

Satellite communications positively impacts nearlyeverything we do. As consumers, we unknowingly (andseamlessly) use it when we’re on wireless calls, using appsrequiring data transfer, and watching broadcasts from disastersites and sporting events. As business professionals, we’remaintaining contact with colleagues and customers in remotelocations and accessing data that’s been collected andtransferred via satellite.

Because of the growing demand for satell itecommunications, many new satellites, new constellations andnew applications are now in the works.

Many of the newer satellites will be quite small andconstellations will be flying in low Earth orbit (LEO). And manyof these constellations will have large quantities of satellitesflying, adding significant complexity to the communicationseffort.

Most of the LEOs now being developed and/or producedare in highly inclined polar or near-polar orbits. Though theirpaths will vary, there’s still some concern with collision dueto the sheer volume of LEO satellites in development – morethan 1,100 LEO satellites have been fully funded for

development and/or launch during the next five years withmany, many more in the works.

Why is LEO so popular?Low Earth orbits, like medium Earth orbits (MEO), aredramatically closer to Earth than GEO orbits. Because of this,smaller satellites can be used and they require considerablyless power. Satellites in LEO orbit are ideal for Earth imagingapplications, too, because of their proximity to Earth. But themost significant benefits of using LEO and MEO satellitesfor communications applications are low latency andincreased throughput.

Both LEO and MEO constellations experience little or nolatency as compared to GEO satellites. And having little orno latency enables mission critical communications andapplications that are more challenging with GEO.

Another reason for the popularity is cost. Smaller satellitescost less to design and build, and many can be launchedtogether so launch costs are less, too. Cost alone hasprovided an ‘in’ for many universities and science-basedbusinesses to join the space race and develop, launch,

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LEO Constellations

operate and maintain a LEO small satellite.Significant to military users is the low probability of

intercept for LEO and MEO satellites. As these satellites arein constant motion, it is much, much more difficult for non-approved users to intercept, communicate with or jam them.The constellations also provide an innate redundancy, whichwe have become comfortable with in terrestrial based cablenetworks, whereby data can be routed through various pathsthrough the network should a single satellite become disabled.

Why is LEO so challenging?LEO satellites are in constant motion as they orbit Earth, soan individual satellite can only cover (or capture) small areasof the planet with each pass. So, many LEO constellationswill be comprised of dozens, hundreds or thousands of smallsatellites. Some of the better known and now in-developmentconstellations include SpaceX (4,000 satellites), Boeing(1,300+ satellites), OneWeb (600+ satellites), and LeoSat(100+ satellites).

Herein lies the complexity. Some constellations, such asLeoSat, will have optical laser inter-satellite communications.But most constellations will rely on intermittentcommunications between each satellite and a ground station,and the data collected by the ground station will need to beanalyzed and correlated with data collected by partnersatellites on a continual basis. However, the challenge thatresults from a moving constellation is that each singularsatellite only has line of sight to an Earth station for a shortperiod of time. Once the satellite moves beyond the field ofview, the Earth station must seek link to a different satellitethat has come into the field of view.

Tracking and communicating with LEO satellites ischallenging for three reasons. First, LEOs move very quicklyand most are only visible for 20 to 30 minutes during eachpass. This requires an antenna that can acquire the signal,track the satellite’s path, and upload or download as muchdata as possible in this short amount of time. Second, withso many satellites flying within each constellation, antennasmust be able to communicate through handoffs from onesatellite to the next to the next. Conventional antennas mayrequire tens of seconds to locate and track a follow-on LEOsatellite. This type of communications outage, though briefand predictable, is undesirable for data communications, andin many circumstances, such as voice or videocommunications, unacceptable. Third, the high duty cycle(constant movement and continual use) requires antennasthat are rugged and high performing. The excessive wearand tear that comes from continual movement, as compared

to a stationary GEO application, creates a different set ofperformance criteria for LEO and MEO ground stations.

Types of LEO tracking antennasSeveral types of antennas can be used to track andcommunicate with LEO satellites, and all must operate withhigh duty cycles. The continual motion of tracking one LEOsatellite after another equates to significant mechanicalperformance requirements for traditional Earth stations. LEOtracking antennas also must move rapidly – both whentracking a LEO satellite from horizon to horizon and whenreturning (retracing) to a position to link to the next satelliteas it rises.

X/Y antennas are the most widely used and most efficientmechanically steered antennas for tracking LEO satellites.X/Y antennas range in size from a small fixed or transportable1.2m aperture to a much larger fixed 12m aperture. An X/Ydesign places the X or elevation positioner parallel to theground. The Y positioner is placed in a vertical plane aboveand perpendicular to the X positioner, and its rotation rangesfrom horizontal to vertical depending on the rotation of theelevation positioner. This design, though simple, pusheskeyholes (areas of data loss) out to the horizons and providesfull hemispheric coverage. To track LEO satellites, X/Yantennas need to move quickly at a typical speed of threedegrees per second, and even quicker to track a new satelliteonce the current satellite passes beyond the ground station’sfield of view.

Elevation over azimuth (El/Az) antennas with parabolicreflectors also work well, but will have a keyhole area whenthe antenna is positioned at zenith. These antennas aredesigned with the azimuth positioner perpendicular to theground with the elevation positioner above. Both positionerscan move independently or in a coordinated manner, and forLEO tracking a third positioner is required to dynamicallychange the base tilt of the antenna. El/Az antennas need tomove at a typical speed of five to ten degrees per second totrack LEO satellites.

One emerging technology is the use of phased array (flatpanel) antennas. These low-profile form factors can be eitherelectronically steered arrays or fixed beam antennas thatutilize a mechanical positioner. Electronically steered array(ESA) flat panel antennas can be steered very quickly –perhaps instantaneously – which eliminates keyhole issuesand minimizes losses, but they also offer less gain than other

El-Az and X-Y Positioner Diagrams by Matthew von Arx

GEO & LEO Orbits by Alan Ellis

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LEO Constellations

types of antennas. Furthermore, ESA antennas typically havea +/- 60-degree field of view, and though this may provideadequate steering for a constellation of large numbers, amechanical positioner may be required for infrequent macrolevel movements in combination with the electronic steeringthat would occur continually. Mechanically steered flat panelantennas perform similarly to mechanically-steered parabolicantennas and will experience losses with a keyhole at zenithposition.

GatewaysAll new LEO constellations will require gateways for trackingthe antennas, downloading data, and sending informationback to each satellite. Depending on the frequency, gatewayantennas vary in size and complexity. The higher thefrequency, the harder it is to position the antenna to trackand communicate with each satellite. Gateway antennas musthave absolute pointing accuracy and no backlash. And thelarger the constellation, the more terminals or gateways willbe needed to maintain frequent communications with eachsatellite.

Many gateways are comprised of three antennas: Anactive antenna, a passive (ready) antenna, and a spare. Somegateways with quick retrace antennas may have one activeantenna and a spare. Rarely is a gateway an individualantenna. Because of this, gateways can be a significantinvestment.

New LEO constellations will be heavily populated withsatellites (i.e. have high orbit density), and most will requiresignificantly more gateways than GEO constellations. Assuch, most new LEO constellations are working with Earthstation antenna designers to provide smaller and moveable(or relocatable) gateway antennas. Instead of a large 10mantenna, a LEO constellation can easily communicate with a2m class to 4m class antenna, such as the multi-bandtransportable antennas made by AvL Technologies, and thusdrive down costs. These antennas can be permanently ‘fixed’to a site, or temporarily anchored at a site as needed, thenpacked into cases, relocated and temporarily anchored to anew site. AvL’s experience with making military ruggedizedantennas – and work in all frequencies – has made thesetranspor table antennas a solid solution for LEOcommunications. AvL antennas also operate with precisionand zero backlash, regardless of the operational environment.

Constellations with inter-satellite links will require fewergateways. These constellations will be able to maintain privatesatellite-to-satellite links and minimize the need for continualcommunication from each satellite to a gateway.

LEO satellite trackingBecause of the volume of LEO satellites that soon will beflying, the speed at which they’re travelling, and variations infrequencies, tracking LEO satellites is challenging. Anyterminal or gateway communicating with a LEO satellite willneed to receive satellite positions on a regular basis, andthis information is pushed to terminals continually. Many typesof tracking are employed, including TLE tracking and ParabolicStep Tracking. Though these tracking methods are complex,an antenna control system such as AvL’s AAQ controller hasthese capabilities and makes LEO tracking simple andmanageable.

TLE trackingTLE, an acronym for two-line element or two-line ephemeris,tracking is an ideal tracking method when memory isconstrained. TLE uses two lines of ASCII text formatted into80 columns, and must be paired with an appropriate algorithmcontaining Standard General Perturbation models, such asSGP, SGP4 or SGP8. These perturbation models serve as apropagator, or math engine, which translates the orbit of asatellite in terms of pointing angles. The beauty of TLEtracking is in its simplicity: An antenna control system for anEarth station reads the TLE through the SGP propagator todetermine a satellite’s location and pointing angles at anypoint in time – but it does not require additional memory to‘remember’ the satellite’s location.

Parabolic Step TrackingParabolic Step Tracking is a further refined peaking method,ideal for tracking satellites that have been in orbit for sometime and have sub-optimal orbits due to gravitational pull andother external forces. This method starts with TLE trackingangles and adds offsets, which are intentional shifts alongthe satellite’s expected path. A satellite initially may beacquired by raster scanning over the propagated TLE anglesto locate the peak of receive energy. A finer acquisition isthen performed by spiral scanning at the satellite’s discoveredlocation, and final peaking is performed whereby trackingoffsets are determined with periodic re-peaking along theparabola of the primary lobe of the antenna’s signal. Re-peaking determines the positional offset angle against TLEpropagated angles then follows the corrected path, which isoften parallel to the TLE trajectory.

This system is complex due to the combining of ParabolicStep Tracking with TLE and SGP propagation, along withlayers of course and fine scanning data, and failures are stillpossible. A typical failure occurs when an antenna is not ableto locate a satellite’s location during a periodic re-peakingcycle. To avoid this type of failure, Earth station antennasare often programmed with instruction for frequent re-peaking;they follow open loop TLE data to find the satellite and re-peak on the signal, and the signal loss is often unnoticed.

SummaryMany new LEO constellations will be soaring above us soon,and they will enhance our daily communications, provide uswith unending sources of new information, and enable manynew applications. Operating and tracking these new antennas,however, is complex and requires high-duty, rugged, andsmart Earth terminals and gateways.Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

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Smarter Shipping

Transas ECDIS bridge

Enabling a machine-learningrevolutionShipping is vital in today’s global economy, and it’s one of those things that many of us take forgranted ‘just works.’ Of course, it’s not nearly so simple, and in an era of squeezing the last dropof efficiency out of anything and everything, smarter shipping has become vital. Here, FrankColes, CEO at Transas, outlines how digital technology from Transas is combining data withmachine intelligence to remove the obstacles standing in the way of smarter shipping.

As shipping sails into the digital age, vessel owners,operators and managers are gradually unlearning anervousness of technology, replacing it with an eagernessto apply technological solutions that improve the performanceof ships, entire fleets and - ultimately - the bottom line.

Numerous innovative solutions have emerged to satisfythis growing appetite, taking advantage of advances insatellite communications, cheaper and more ubiquitouscomputing power, and new techniques in softwareengineering resulting in greater machine intelligence.

To get an idea of how far we have come, imagine how ademonstration of a driverless car would have grabbed frontpage headlines in the mainstream press 10 years ago; todaysuch tests are hardly reported outside tech news outlets. Inthe long-run, these technologies may lead to autonomously-operated vessels. For the time being though, they provide a

springboard that will accelerate the transition to smartshipping.

Allowing a freer exchange of informationHowever, as things stand, the technologies in question willfall short of their full potential, according to Frank Coles, CEOof Transas, the innovative, digital solutions company. “We areunlikely to reach full speed ahead because mostcontemporary work is in isolation. Developers often focus onefficiency gains for one job; they might do it well but they failto comprehend the full picture. To date, the industry hasn’thad the right support platforms to integrate its digital solutionsand fully embrace a smarter way of operating ships andmanaging fleets. Overcoming this barrier will depend onbreaking down these artificially imposed constraints andjoining the dots.”

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Smarter Shipping

For Coles, this realisation has become a focus for R&D atTransas, resulting in the birth of THESIS: the TransasHarmonised Eco System of Integrated Solutions. Announcedin early 2016, THESIS is intended as a flexible shippingindustry-specific platform that will allow a freer exchange ofinformation between stakeholders in the maritime supplychain. Sharing the data generated on board ships, acrossfleets, and at shore-based facilities more widely will create amultiplier effect in the value derived from that data.

“Imagine if the shipping industry had access to its ownpowerful operating system – like Apple’s iOS or Google’sAndroid for smartphones,” enthuses Coles. “Consider howpowerful it is to have all your devices connected and controlledby a single user profile which lets your data flow seamlesslybetween them thanks to cross-platform integration. As wehave all personally experienced, this silently facilitates fasterand more efficient ways of connected working and socialising.It is also scalable as evidenced by the spread of thesenetworks into our homes and cars.

“Now, transplant that approach to the maritime industrywith the introduction of a platform for ship owners andoperators, where instead of the captain’s range of personaldevices being linked and synced with each other, it’s thebridge operations and the control of information andprocesses that is shared from ship to shore and across fleets.”

Reducing human error with machine learning techniquesThe elements required to build this platform – THESIS – aremostly already in existence; they just haven’t been joinedtogether. To expedite matters, Transas entered two strategicpartnerships earlier this year. Its new relationship with JapanRadio Company (JRC) will see the two companies workingtogether on R&D, product distr ibution and projectcollaboration. One of the aims is to unite JRC’s reputation inhardware with Transas’ expertise in software to produce next-generation e-navigation solutions for both SOLAS and non-SOLAS markets. Initial projects include collaboration on thejoint design and development of new electronic chart systemsand radar products.

Transas is also partnering Satcom Global to incorporateintegrated connectivity into THESIS, bringing the benefits ofSatcom Global’s Aura VSAT network to vessels using Transas’

navigation and voyage optimisation solutions on board toconnect seamlessly with shore-based fleet operationscentres.

Crucially, Transas is not limiting its thinking to ship-to-shore data exchange. THESIS is about connecting ship,operations office, training facilities and ship traffic control tocreate a cohesive community capable of joined-up decision-making. It will unite and empower stakeholders to achievehigher operational standards and greater environmentalperformance, while improving efficiency and safety.

THESIS is not simply a repackaging of existing productsinto a combined solution. Instead, Transas is working onentirely new software solutions to exploit emergingtechnologies such as artificial intelligence, to bolstersituational awareness and enhance decision-support onboard and on shore.

Specifically, the company plans to launch advancedsoftware tools that reduce the risk of a human error on thebridge culminating in a serious incident. In a first for theindustry, these will employ machine learning techniques todetect anomalies in vessel and operator behaviour and raisethe alarm before the consequences of an action or momentarylapse in attention become irreversible. In addition to vesseltrack prediction, the solutions will detect a variety of excessiveor unusual manoeuvring patterns, keeping an eye onparameters such as speed and rate of turn, as well asunexpected deviations in fuel consumption.

In addition to the safety benefits, the insight derived frompulling together a wider selection of datasets can beharnessed to boost operational efficiency at individual shipand fleet level in ways so far only imagined. Integratingmetocean data, information from traffic separation schemesand regional regulations on acceptable fuel types will makeit possible to optimise vessel routing to reduce fuelconsumption based on new inputs that enrich the efficiencyalgorithms. Using machine intelligence to augment thehuman in the loop can help in other ways. For decades,shipping companies have conducted much of their businessusing spreadsheets, emails, and phone calls. Consequently,both operational decisions and transactions with regulators,customs, and other players in the supply chain involvedisconnected conversations, unnecessary paperwork andadministrative overheads. Coles believes there is scope toautomate some of those workflows, create greatertransparency and uncover opportunities for optimisation.

Enabling a revolutionTo substantiate this view, he points to Maersk, which lastyear announced that ‘everything that can be digitalized willbe digitized.’ “It is not doing this for novelty value but seesreal commercial value in adopting digital solutions to removedelays and inefficiencies,” he says.

Putting in place a unified platform like THESIS is a criticalstep in enabling this revolution to come about. It ensures thenecessary raw data is gathered, stored and easily accessibleto the relevant stakeholders, as well as any new digital toolsand solutions that emerge to extract meaning from data.“Technology shouldn’t be an end in itself – but a tool to achievean end. We want to help the industry improve by helping itmake better decisions and boost competitive advantage,”concludes Coles.

Frank Coles, CEO at Transas

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Q&A NSLComm

Working in the field of satellitecommunications, NSLComm hasdeveloped antenna technologies totransform the efficiency ofcommunications services, bringingsupercharged bandwidth at a lowerprice per bit. NSLComm isrevolutionizing satellite communi-cations with a fabric-like,expandable antenna that mayboost performance by up to 100xto 500x. By launching small andunfolding once in space, NSL’santenna opens a wide array of newapplications in the $300B/yr spacemarket.

Innovation leads thewayNSLComm was established to develop large apertureexpandable antennas that can provide more than ten times thebandwidth of traditional rigid antennas. The design, whichenables the lightweight antennas to be folded into very smallvolumes during the launch, features a flexible sub-reflector thatcan correct any unfolding imperfections in orbit, while alsoallowing the coverage pattern to be altered on demand. AmySaunders met with co-founder and Chief Engineer DanielRockberger to find out more about the company’s progress andits plans.

NSLComm Chief Engineer DanielRockberger

The antenna is constructed with a lightweight shape memory polymer (SMP),which means it can be folded up like a parachute for launch

Q&A NSLComm

Question: Can you outlineNSLComm’s innovative communi-cations system, and how close it’sgetting to being space-qualified?Daniel Rockberger: As we discussedlast year, our communications sub-system has three main par ts; theantenna, sub-reflector, and transceiver.

The antenna is constructed with alightweight shape memory polymer(SMP), which means it can be foldedup like a parachute for launch, and thenbe deployed in orbit with nomechanisms. Our antennas can be builtsmall, at 50cm for CubeSats, all the wayup to 5m for traditional larger satellites;the technology is entirely scalable.We’ve done a lot of research anddevelopment, but in the end, theantenna is quite simple and cost

effective. With no mechanisms ormotors, materials and manufacturingcosts are going to be very low.

An expandable antenna is nevergoing to be as accurate as a rigidantenna, there will always be creasesafter it has opened. That’s where thesub-reflector comes in. It ’s aninnovative, smart, flexible device whichwill allow us to change the shape of theantenna in space. We’ll be able to repairany creases, or change the shape ofthe beam entirely to deliver differentcoverage. There’s a lot of innovation inour sub-reflector design.

Today, we’ve finished our criticaldesign review, which means that all thedesign work is finished, andmanufacturing has started. We plan tolaunch our demonstrator satellite at thestart of 2018. Once we’ve successfullydemonstrated our system in space, wecan start to sell it to customers. Themost important thing for us right now isto get a demonstrator in space, to testthe main elements.

Question: What frequencies are youworking with right now, and how areyou responding to market demands?Daniel Rockberger: Some of our teamcome from the small satellite arena soit’s natural and easy for us to start witha CubeSat. It’s a first product, but it’snot only for demonstration; it will delivera good service.

The 6U CubeSat that we’redeveloping now is a Ka-band satellite,and, in order to cover multiple areas,we’re designing it with three or four

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Q&A NSLComm

beams. We’re sticking with Ka-bandbecause we also plan to look at 5mantennas for GEO satellites, andbecause we want the bandwidth. All thesatellite constellations that are plannedor going up are Ku or Ka-band; if youwant that bandwidth, you need to be onthose frequencies, and we want to be apart of that. Our 6U CubeSat will be ableto download 1Gbps - that’s 500-1,000times more than a traditional satelliteof this size. We’re turning smallCubeSats into ‘communicationmonsters.’

As well as Ka-band, we’re alsolooking at higher frequency bands. V-band is very interesting to us becauseit’s higher bandwidth, although it doescome with a downside. The higher yougo with the frequency, the narrower thebeam gets, reducing it to something like20-30km. That’s why we needmultibeams, to deliver more coverage.In addition, the higher the frequency, themore accurate the antenna needs to be.Ka-band already requires less than1mm accuracy of the antenna, and V-band is even worse. However, with ourtechnology, we don’t need to make theperfect antenna; folding up somethingsoft and then deploying it in space, thereare always going to be imperfections.We just made sure that we could fix itin-situ.

We’re looking at all the bands ourpotential customers are going to beinterested in. Customers all across theworld are looking at V-band, so we’relooking at V-band.

Question: In 2016, NSLCommannounced plans to deploynanosatellites with 55cm diameterantennae that can be folded forlaunch and deployed in space. Canyou provide more detail on thisproject?Daniel Rockberger: We always saidthat we were starting out modestly.We’re producing a sub-system forsatellites that we’re happy to sell, forboth constellations and stand-alonesatellite customers. Our longer-termplan is to be part of a constellation, butwe’re going about it by building up goodrevenues through our sub-system salesfirst, which will help us gain investors.

Because of our in-houseexperience, we know what it takes toput up a constellation, not only withregards to the amount of money, but

also the partnerships that are involved.You need to build a consortium: Youneed a content provider, a satelliteprovider, and a ground network groupof companies that will come together tobuild the constellation.

Question: What markets will you betargeting with your sub-systemtechnology, and where do you expectto see the greatest uptake?Daniel Rockberger: We’ve beenspeaking with a lot of potentialcustomers in the field, and there’s a bigmixture in terms of applications. Ofcourse, there’s the GEO market, whichhave a big interest in our largeantennas; 5m is the sweet spot thatthey’re looking for. There are maybe twomanufacturers today, they’re Americanand very expensive, and we know thatEurope is looking for an alternative witha lower cost and mass.

Today’s satellite market is changing.Going forwards, the communicationspayloads are going to be more flexible;everyone wants to be able to usedifferent frequencies, beam-hopping,and pattern shaping. With traditionalantennas, if a satellite is launched withan antenna shaped for a specificmarket, and then that market doesn’tdevelop as well as hoped, you can findyourself stuck. You can’t just point thatantenna somewhere else, it won’t workproperly.

Everyone is looking for flexibilitywhen it comes to satellites, and thereare two ways to answer that. One is tomake GEO satellites designed to lastfor maybe seven years, instead of thetraditional 15, before they needreplacing. That’s expensive though. Theother option is to have flexibility on-board, with a sub-reflector that canchange the shape of the antenna,across the lifetime of the satellite. That’san option that many companies haveexpressed an interest in.

The newer players are looking forsomething that is small, that they canfold up into a Cubesat or other smallsatellite. That’s another market that isgoing to prove impor tant for ourcompany.

Question: What’s on the horizon forNSLComm for the rest of 2017 andbeyond?Daniel Rockberger: For the rest of theyear, we’ll be building, testing, and

getting our demonstrator satellite readyfor launch. We haven’t selected a launchcompany just yet. Once we know exactlywhen we’ll be ready, we’ll be making acontract for launch.

We already have our first customer,an Israeli customer, and we’re going todo a sub-reflector project with them,although I can’t go into too much detail.They’re very interested in the ability tochange shapes.

We’re also going to be doing a lotmore sub-reflector tests. We’re stilllearning precisely how the sub-reflectoracts, what we can do with it, and whatthe algorithm has to be to change shapeand to achieve what we want to achieve.There’s a lot of tests to come.

We don’t have the internal funds todo a whole GEO project, but we aredoing all the simulations that areneeded. To add multibeam capabilitiesto a sub-reflector is a challenge; whena large array of beams has to look at atraditional 5m antenna, that’s one thing,but when those beams need to look ata sub-reflector about 10 percent of thesize, that’s a bit more challenging. We’redoing simulations to see how manybeams we can get in, because for thehigh throughput satellites in GEO, morebeams are required.

NSLComm develops expandableantennas

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Gilat Case Study

Gilat self-install VSAT

Gilat Satellite Networks facilitateTricolor TV broadband serviceTricolor TV’s game-changing ‘Satellite Internet’ service allows previously unconnected Russianconsumers to access the Internet at an affordable price. This forward-looking satellite TV provideris using Gilat’s Broadband Access solution and Eutelsat’s high throughput satellite (HTS) networkto deliver broadband access to homes and businesses in Western Russia’s isolated regions.Doreet Oren, Director of Product Marketing at Gilat Satellite Networks, outlines the developmentof the ‘Satellite Internet’ project, and how it has changed the lives of many.

About half of the world’s population still isn’t connectedto the Internet, and most of those 3.5 billion people live inremote areas in both developed and developing countries.Bringing Internet access to these unconnected communitiesis vital for the economic development, education and physicalhealth of their residents. However, to make this vision a reality,service providers must overcome a number of seriousobstacles inherent to remote areas, such as lack ofinfrastructure, topological barriers and exorbitant deploymentcosts.

Two years ago, this would have been a very accuratedescription of the consumer broadband market in WesternRussia’s remote towns and villages. Simple tasks that mostof us take for granted, such as surfing the Internet or sendingan email, was a dream for the residents of these unconnectedmarkets. Terrestrial infrastructure did not support high-speedbroadband services, and satellite-based services were Russia Coverage of Eutelsat 36c HTS Satellite

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Gilat Case Study

prohibitively expensive due to the high cost of Ku-bandsatellite capacity.

Tricolor TV rises to the challengeTricolor TV, Russia’s largest direct to home (DTH) satelliteTV provider, decided it was time to challenge this status quo.

Tricolor TV recognized the business potential of bringingInternet access to unconnected remote markets lackingsufficiently developed terrestrial network infrastructure. Butit also knew that for its two-way ‘Satellite Internet’ service tosucceed where others had failed, it had to reduce the enduser price without compromising service quality.

To execute this strategy, Tricolor TV needed to findinnovative technology partners that would allow it to effectivelyleverage less expensive, high throughput Ka-band satellites.The savings in OPEX could then be passed on to its SatelliteInternet subscribers.

On the consumer end, Tricolor TV sought an easy-to-install VSAT device that could support broadband Internetservices over Ka-band with performance equal to that of aterrestrial solution. To offer an attractively priced consumerservice, back-end support for flexible, usage-based tariffplans was another important business requirement.

The project: Deployment of Gilat’s SkyEdge II-c VSAT forconsumer broadbandTo meet these challenging requirements, Tricolor TV choseGilat’s consumer broadband VSAT solution, comprising amulti-service hub platform and high-performance VSATterminals.

Subscribers connect to Tricolor TV’s broadband serviceusing Gilat’s easy-to-install Gemini VSAT terminal. Designedto enhance the user experience, the Gemini VSAT enablesfast web browsing, video streaming, IPTV, VoIP, and otherbroadband services. The VSAT contains a full set of protocoloptimization and application acceleration features, includingTCP and HTTP protocol acceleration and payloadcompression. Gemini’s advanced adaptive transmissiontechnologies maximize performance and improve serviceavailability for HTS and wide-beam satellites.

Satellite capacity is provided by Eutelsat’s Express AMU1/EUTELSAT 36C HTS, whose payload comprises 18 Ka-bandbeams delivering continuous coverage of Western Russiafrom the Arctic coastline to the Caspian Sea. The Eutelsat

Gilat complete VSAT-in-a-Box

Gilat consumer broadband installation

network is managed by Gilat’s SkyEdge II-c hub platform atthe Dubna satellite center. Thanks to Gilat’s multi-VNO model,which allows Eutelsat to use the same hardware platform formultiple service providers, Tricolor TV was able to launch its‘Satellite Internet’ service with minimal infrastructureinvestment.

“In working with Gilat, we are putting in place a keycomponent of a high-performance broadband infrastructurethat will deliver high-quality connectivity,” said Kirill Yanchenko,General Director of the Eutelsat Networks company thatmarkets satellite services in Russia.

Comprehensive management capabilities are providedthrough Gilat’s scalable and distributed SkyEdge II-c hubplatform, which is optimized for high throughput satellites.The centralized global management system providesadvanced and flexible ISP management capabilities includingusage-based service plans, data quota management,automatic service activation, provisioning and integration withexisting billing systems.

Bottom line: Affordable, easy-to-deploy Internet accessfor consumersNow fully operational, Tricolor TV’s ‘Satellite Internet’ serviceoffers consumer and professional subscribers high-speeddata, voice and Internet access with speeds of up to 40Mbpsdownstream and 12Mbps upstream. This attractively-pricedservice is ideal for mass consumption, starting at a minimumof 275 rubles (~$1.25)/month for up to 1GB of traffic andincreasing incrementally based on the level of usage.

To meet the needs of non-technical consumers and toreduce equipment costs, Gilat’s Gemini VSAT is designedfor simple setup and installation. The VSAT can be self-installed and set up in less than 90 minutes with automaticservice activation. Tricolor TV is also planning to offer Gilat’sScorpio VSAT, an innovative all-outdoor VSAT-in-a-Box, whichfurther simplifies the installation process and allows for easymaintenance and roof mounting.

“‘Satellite Internet’ is a modern, technological product thatprovides subscribers with access to high speed Internet evenin regions where the use of alternative access methods tothe network is difficult,” said Alexey Karpov, Director of Salesand Subscriber Service at Tricolor TV. “By working togetherwith Eutelsat Networks, and with Gilat’s broadband consumerVSATs, we can offer consumers high-quality and affordablebroadband access to the Internet.”

gilat.pmd 16/10/2017, 23:1247


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Advertisers’ index September/October 2017

Ad Index.pmd 18/10/2017, 13:451

http://www.satellite-evolution.com/magazines

Untitled-1 22/01/2017, 16:331

http://bit.ly/28ViDgT

Untitled-2 16/10/2017, 23:551

http://bit.ly/28XZHRb

september/october 2017 - satelliteevolutiongroup.com | september/october 20171 view from the top...

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