Army awards contract for satellite equipment upgrade

DataPath Inc. will help upgrade Army satellite communications systems under a $12 million delivery order.

The contract calls for the company to provide the Army with Ka band conversion kits, spare parts kits and technical services that enable DataPath satellite transportable terminals and other battlefield communications systems to operate on the Wideband Global Satellite (WGS) communications system, company officials said.

Using Ka band conversion kits, vital battlefield satellite communications terminals can be converted quickly in the field to operate over the recently launched WGS system in addition to operating in the commercial Ku band.

This $12 million order is part of a four-year agreement with the Army that has a potential value of $225 million, DataPath officials said.

Reconfiguring satellite terminals in the field to operate in the Ka band is an important step to ensure that communications systems accommodate the need for bandwidth and flexibility to support U.S. military operations, said Steve Lindeman, vice president of business operations at DataPath.

The SATCOM terminals being converted were designed and built by DataPath and deployed by the Army for the Joint Network Node/Warfighter Information Network-Tactical program.

DataPath, of Duluth, Ga., is a provider of satellite-based network solutions and complex, high-bandwidth communications networks for military, civilian government and commercial organizations.