Longest-Running Airline in the Americas Selects Iridium for Voice and Data Communications

(Bethesda, Md., February 5, 2008) -- As Iridium(r) Satellite continues to gain momentum in the aeronautical satellite communications market for the world's major airlines, the company is proud to announce that Avianca Airlines of Columbia is installing Avionica's Iridium-based satLINK Communications Module on its fleet of 14 long-range Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft. Avianca is the oldest airline in the Americas and the second-oldest in the world.

Avionica's satLINK Iridium system is a practical alternative offering additional voice and data capabilities to supplement radio cockpit communications. The installation will include antenna, wiring, structural elements and a control panel providing voice communications worldwide, global positioning data over TCP/IP, dedicated voice and data channels and programmable traffic routing.

"South America's topography causes HF signal reflections which lead to gaps in service availability," explained Raul Segredo, president of Avionica. "During inclement weather, these gaps restrict non-stop flights, resulting in delays as well as increased technical and labor costs. However, Avionica's satLINK system operates over the Iridium network. With Iridium's ubiquitous global coverage, our solution effectively eliminates the problem of interruptions in cockpit communications and ultimately improves global coordination among the flight operations group, maintenance and crew scheduling."

"The application of Iridium satcom services will eliminate our sole dependency on standard radio communication methods which are limited over remote areas and can be unreliable under certain weather conditions," said Martin Arias, aircraft communications project leader, Avianca. "We selected the satLINK product based on Iridium's lower cost-per-kilobyte of data transferred as well as the ease and speed of installation relative to other systems."

"Iridium has experienced 55 percent growth in the aviation sector over the last 12 months," said Greg Ewert, executive vice president, Iridium Satellite. "Avianca is one of an ever-increasing number of major international air carriers to recognize and utilize the unique benefits of Iridium's global air-to-ground voice and data services. Our prevailing success in this arena is largely attributable to the innovative products being brought to market by our value-added partners such as Avionica."

Source : Iridium Satellite LLC

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