[Satnews] Airbus Defence and Space has been awarded a 145 million euros contract by the procurement agency of German Armed Forces (BAAINBw) for the long term operation of the SATCOMBw secure satellite communications system.

Airbus Defence and Space has been operating the SATCOMBw system since 2006. This contract, which has been renewed for the next seven-and-a-half years, includes the on orbit operation of the military COMSATBw1 and COMSATBw 2 satellites as well as the operation of their teleport and associated networks in Weilheim, Germany, until 2022.
 

Artistic rendition of the German Armed Forces COMSATBw-2 satellite.

Image courtesy of Airbus Defence & Space.

The two military communication satellites COMSATBw-1 and COMSATBw-2 provide German armed forces (Bundeswehr) in operation with military UHF and X-band plus additional  capacity in C- and Ku-band over a coverage area that stretches from the Americas to Eastern Asia.
 
In addition to the two satellites, the SATCOMBw program provides a secure ground communications network and control system. Command centers, vehicles, aircrafts and ships deployed around the world are linked directly into the base communications networks for voice, video, database access and IP (Internet Protocol) services.

Airbus Defence and Space has been responsible for the overall SATCOMBw system design, integration and delivery of a fully operational capability. The company has also delivered more than 500 ground terminals with range of antenna diameters from 1.2 to 4.6 meters included maritime terminals.