(Redlands, CA) PACTEC PROVIDES VSAT COMMUNICATIONS FOR TSUNAMI DISASTER RELIEF

Communications services support multiple organizations

Redlands, CA – PACTEC announced that it now has two emergency communications centers in operation in Indonesia providing support for tsunami relief workers. The centers are located in United Nations Base Camps in Banda Aceh and Meulaboh. Both centers, referred to as Internet Cafés, use Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) satellite systems to provide high-speed Internet data and voice services for relief workers. The Cafés can also offer long range wireless LAN links to other organizations and individual aid workers within 20km of the centers.

Reliable communications among relief organizations and with the rest of the world is essential, and the Internet Cafés are being used heavily. Relief workers are able to use laptops furnished by the centers, connect their own laptops to the network, or access the VSAT system with wireless communications. The Cafés will remain in operation as long as they are needed during relief and reconstruction.

Close cooperation with AirServ International and the support of several other organizations were instrumental in overcoming financial, operational and logistics challenges when deploying the Internet Cafés. PACTEC staff provides ongoing hardware, software and communications support for aid workers.

Both Internet Cafés will operate long-range wireless local area network access point using Tranzeo equipment. Electrical power is provided by redundant generators in the camps, backed up by uninterruptible power supplies with large external battery backup to operate over extended periods without generator power. The cafes are open from 7am to 9pm or later, and the wireless access is available 24 hours a day. Each site also includes two Cisco VOIP phones for voice communications.

The VSAT service is provided by SDN Global of Charlotte, NC. The space segment is provided by Loral Skynet, which donated two months of free bandwidth on T10 for initial operation. The PACTEC service is using 1 Mbps downlink and a 768 kbps uplink. The system uses C-band frequencies to eliminate rain fade problems typical of tropical regions. The satellite equipment for both Internet Cafés was donated by iDirect of Herndon, VA, which provided two Netmodem II+ systems and the associated outdoor electronics.

The staff of PACTEC has VSAT experience worldwide, the majority from installing nearly 100 systems under difficult conditions in Afghanistan. PACTEC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit humanitarian aid organization which provides communications and aviation support to hundreds of relief, aid, and development organizations worldwide.

For more information on SDN Global satellite communications support, see www.sdnglobal.com .

For more information on iDirect, see www.idirect.net.