Advanced Television

ViaSat wins Air Force One broadband deal

July 26, 2016

By Chris Forrester

The US presidential jet, Air Force One, already has all sorts of secure two-way air-to-ground communications, but a $73 million (€66.3m) order from the US Defense Department to California-based ViaSat significantly boosts the aircraft’s broadband connectivity.

The ViaSat deal also covers in-flight communications for Air Force Two, the back-up jet, as well as a pair of smaller jets that are used for other senior VIPs.

The contract covers technology which will allow the President – and his or her staff – to stream full-motion HDTV video, as well as increasing the number of circuits for voice conference calls and VoIP links.

Air Force One will use Ku and Ka-band frequencies to connect to satellite signals.

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