They're off and ready to race, no concerns for communications as the competing VO70 class boats leave Qingdao, China, on Saturday 14th February 2009, for a 12,300nm leg across the Pacific before arriving in Rio de Janeiro at the end of March 2009. This is the longest leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-2009 and an important one for sponsor Thrane & Thrane as the fleet is sailing into the new FleetBroadband coverage spot provided by the third Inmarsat I4 satellite.

The third Inmarsat I4 satellite was launched in August 2008 and enters into commercial service on February 24 2009 to cover the Asia/Pacific region including Australia and New Zealand. Once fully operational, FleetBroadband will offer a mobile broadband satellite communications service, which is truly global.

Every racing VO70 boat is fitted with cutting edge SAILOR® systems, including Thrane & Thrane's flagship FleetBroadband solution, SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband, which has enabled the smooth and fast delivery of a wealth of stunning high definition television footage to the global audience of millions of sailing fans.

Additional equipment for each boat includes one SAILOR Fleet33 and two SAILOR Inmarsat-C terminals as well as SAILOR MF/HF and fixed and portable SAILOR VHF radios. Volvo Ocean Race officials and race umpires are also using the recently introduced SAILOR VHF Scrambler portable radios for secure and confidential communication during race starts and in-port races.

The SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband used by the competing VO70s is the only mobile broadband solution to offer full automatic satellite beam switchover, so the crews will not need to manually tune in and reconfigure, which allows them to concentrate on racing while staying connected at all times. This unique switchover functionality is also vital for the many deep sea merchant vessels that SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband has been, and will be installed on, ensuring that crew will receive an uninterrupted service when passing from region to region.

"The third I4 satellite going live makes FleetBroadband truly global and we're delighted that the VO70s will be among the first boats to make use of it with SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband onboard," says Bjarne Lauritzen, Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing, Thrane & Thrane. "The Volvo Ocean Race is a fantastic vehicle for SAILOR, as it is the toughest test our products can be put through. By performing onboard the VO70s, SAILOR shows its credentials for withstanding perhaps the most extreme environment possible at sea."