[107850] in Cypherpunks
Re: Will Iridium Become SatCom Of Choice?
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Declan McCullagh)
Tue Jan 26 10:08:49 1999
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 09:58:06 -0500
To: Steve Schear <schear@lvcm.com>, cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
From: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com>
In-Reply-To: <v04003a05b2d165ec1a4c@[24.1.50.17]>
Reply-To: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com>
Right. I wrote a cover story on Iridium, noting the DoD's interest in it.
But it does not use encryption to secure communications channels. --Declan
At 04:08 PM 1-24-99 -0800, Steve Schear wrote:
>[Although Iridium can enable many military operations it also opens up the
>opportunity (via a hack or break-in) for adversaries to clandestinely close
>track and monitor one another's operations]
>
>Will Iridium Become SatCom Of Choice?
>
> Schriever AFB - January 22, 1999 - The Air Force's Space
> Battlelab is nearing the end of its evaluation of new commercial
> mobile satellite communication capabilities for the Department of
> Defense that could change the way all the services do business.
>
> The lab, in the last phase of its testing, has sent 130 of Motorola's
> Iridium satellite phones to all the warfighting commanders-in-chief to
> be evaluated in the field. The phone, only slightly larger than the
> average cellular phone, provides mobile worldwide service, unlike
> ground-based systems that have limited service areas. The pagers also
> have worldwide coverage.
>
> Air Force leadership has a strong interest in new commercial
> space-based technology.
>
> "We've given Iridium hand sets to our forward air controllers in
> Bosnia to test, and they've been able to use them to call in mock air
> support," said Whit Peters, acting Secretary of the Air Force. "We've
> also used them for air traffic control at Tuzla (Bosnia). It's very
> interesting when you look at these commercial systems. I think they
> will leverage a lot of the military systems we already have. The Air
> Force is very interested in learning how to use these types of
> systems."
>
> The Iridium system and other commercial products have the capability
> to drastically change the way the Air Force does business.
>
> "I think we are looking at a whole new paradigm in space - the
> commercial providers are going to be much more capable of meeting
> military needs at a lower cost. Now we need to look at how we can do
> our missions to take maximum advantage of that," said Peters.
>
> Early results of the worldwide field-testing, which began Dec. 1, have
> been encouraging.
>
> "Anyone who uses or hears about the capabilities of this phone wants
> one," said 1st Lt. Timothy Oran, chief of information operation
> concepts at the space battlelab. "We've made calls from an Air Force
> plane flying at 30,000 feet, and from a floating buoyant cable for the
> Navy just 25 miles north of the Arctic Circle."
>
> The Space Battlelab does not make decisions about fielding these
> units, but it does report on the capabilities, flexibility and
> limitations of the technology, then makes recommendations to the Air
> Staff who does make the fielding decisions.
>
> For example, the Air Force could put a system in every cockpit that
> would allow commanders anywhere in the world to talk directly with the
> pilots. "This may do away with some command and control systems, or
> enhance existing ones," said Oran. "Maybe the Army could use the
> Iridium pager and connect it to an handheld computer to enhance the
> real-time flow of information for their digital battlefield concept."
>
> "It's now possible our special operations forces won't need to lug
> around suitcase-sized satellite phones like we have now -- these small
> handheld units will do," said Maj. Jim Traverse, chief of intelligence
> concepts for the space battlelab. "The possibilities are endless."
>
> Although the phones might sound expensive at nearly $3,400 each, with
> airtime that averages $5 a minute, the DOD stands to save a lot of
> money for the capability it would get.
>
> "It would cost billions to deploy a comparable system," said Oran.
> "Then, you would have to have the people to run and maintain the
> system."
>
> In addition to finding new and cheaper ways of performing its
> missions, the DOD testing could also help improve the capabilities and
> functionality of the whole Iridium system.
>
> "The military is using our products and services in applications and
> situations that are different from our commercial customers," said
> Steve Michell, Program Manager, Motorola Worldwide Network Services.
> "The test results from the Space Battlelab will not only help us meet
> the military's need, but could enhance our service to all our
> customers."
>
> From the earpieces that allow hands-free use of the phones, to the
> sound quality of the connections, the battlelab's field users are
> scrutinizing and reporting on a vast array of items.
>
> "We've found that although the phone was not intended to work inside a
> building, it often does," said Oran. Findings like this could lead to
> other uses for the system that were never considered.
>
> "We are just starting to understand the vast capabilities this system
> may offer," said Oran. "As the Iridium and other commercial systems
> come on-line, we will have to rethink the way we do business."
>
