The scale of the disaster in Japan, who some have compared to “four Katrinas,” is as mind-boggling today as it was a week ago.



The automatic reaction in the SATCOM community was one of “ready, set, go” — let’s get our SATCOM systems turned up to help with communications efforts. The ITU cobbled together a bunch of satellite phones and terminals, et. al. as quickly as it could…

From the ITU press release: Among material already deployed are 78 Thuraya satellite phones equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to facilitate search and rescue efforts, along with 13 Iridium satellite phones and 37 Inmarsat Broadband Global Area Network terminals. An additional 30 Inmarsat terminals are ready for dispatch. The equipment can be charged by car batteries and are supplied with solar panels to enable operations during power outages.

This may seem as if it’s not nearly enough to help, but you should also consider the response inside Japan. Only yesterday (March 23rd) did the Ofunato City Hall get a much-needed satcom connection via the KIKU No. 8 (ETS-VIII) mobile satellite system…

Andrew's commentary on the state of SATCOM company response, or lack thereof, to the Japanese disaster is well worth your time to read... simply access this direct link to read his entire blog post.