SES Space & Defense Awarded U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Contract to Support DEUCSI Program

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SES Space & Defense Awarded U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Contract to Support DEUCSI Program
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SES Space & Defense to demonstrate integrating commercial broadband services across multi-orbit, multi-band satellite networks for airborne communications and the Arctic region

Reston, Va., 5 September 2023 – SES Space & Defense, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SES focused on delivering satellite network solutions for the U.S. Government, has been awarded a multi-year contract by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to conduct a series of tests to integrate space broadband services across a multi-orbit satellite network in support of the Defense Experimentation Using Commercial Space Internet (DEUCSI) program. This announcement by AFRL is the third award under the DEUCSI CALL 003 Program seeking experimentation for use cases in the Arctic region and airborne communications. 

The DEUCSI program is intended to establish communications with military platforms via multiple commercial space internet (CSI) constellations in Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), and Low Earth Orbit (LEO) utilizing a common user terminal with the ability to alternate between space broadband providers. 

As the industry’s leading COMSATCOM integrator, SES Space & Defense will demonstrate multi-orbit, multi-band solutions that seamlessly switch among commercial space broadband services in different frequency bands to access favorable spectrum or failover between constellations. In doing so, SES Space & Defense will leverage common hardware elements to communicate with commercial space broadband constellations and military communications systems to provide greater flexibility in communication paths while minimizing the deployment of constellation-specific hardware.

“An integrated multi-orbit, multi-band satellite architecture is a requirement in today’s contested and congested environment for a network-centric military,” said SES Space & Defense Senior Vice President of Space Initiatives, Jim Hooper. “The DEUCSI program is a great example to showcase SES Space & Defense’s multi-orbit, multi-band holistic approach to deliver seamless interoperability to the U.S. Air Force to achieve unparalleled situation awareness and strategic advances for mission success.” 

For further information, please contact:

Melanie Delannoy
Vice President, Marketing & Communications
Tel. +1 571 443 7993
[email protected]

About SES Space & Defense

SES Space & Defense is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SES, the leader in global content connectivity solutions, and is exclusively focused on building, managing, and supporting the most advanced satellite network solutions for the U.S. Government. SES Space & Defense leverages a proven multi-operator network integration and management capability, an extensive global terrestrial network, as well as access to SES’s multi-orbit satellite fleet. It also offers U.S. Department of Defense customers the essential tools in cybersecurity for mission-critical operations, coupled with a proven track record in governance and compliance. SES Space & Defense operates under a proxy board, enabling it to support classified projects, and it has been present in the U.S. Government satcom market for over four decades. Further information can be found at: www.sessd.com.

About SES

SES has a bold vision to deliver amazing experiences everywhere on earth by distributing the highest quality video content and providing seamless connectivity around the world. As the leader in global content connectivity solutions, SES operates the world’s only multi-orbit constellation of satellites with the unique combination of global coverage and high performance, including the commercially-proven, low-latency Medium Earth Orbit O3b system. By leveraging a vast and intelligent, cloud-enabled network, SES is able to deliver high-quality connectivity solutions anywhere on land, at sea or in the air, and is a trusted partner to the world’s leading telecommunications companies, mobile network operators, governments, connectivity and cloud service providers, broadcasters, video platform operators and content owners. SES’s video network carries  ~8,000 channels and has an unparalleled reach of 369 million households, delivering managed media services for both linear and non-linear content. The company is listed on Paris and Luxembourg stock exchanges (Ticker: SESG). Further information is available at: www.ses.com