Northrop Grumman Australia said it is partnering with Inmarsat to develop a sovereign Australian satellite communications capability that will support the country’s future joint force.
Launched in July 2020, JP9102 is the government’s project to develop its first fully owned and controlled military satellite communication constellation.
The two companies will collaborate to deliver an integrated control segment that provides the Commonwealth with flexibility across commercial and military SATCOM networks.
The companies have already collaborated to deliver satellite communications capabilities through the HEOsat program, a collaborative program between the government of Norway, the United States Air Force and Inmarsat, which will deliver broadband services to the Arctic region.
“As an established satellite communications provider to the ADF, we’re proud to partner with Inmarsat and build on our shared history of developing global satellite communications networks,” said Christine Zeitz, general manager, Northrop Grumman Asia Pacific.
“Inmarsat is pleased to be partnering with Northrop Grumman Australia to meet the requirements of the Australian Defence Force,” said Rajeev Suri, chief executive officer of Inmarsat. “Together, we provide the right balance of program delivery track record, access to advanced satellite system technology, protection against evolving threats, and sovereign assurance through long-term delivery for Australia, from Australia. Inmarsat brings highly complementary capabilities to Northrop Grumman’s JP9102 proposal.”
Back in 2020, the government announced that the new future satellite communications capability will supplement, and then replace, the existing defense satellite communications system, with a focus on supporting operations within the Indo-Pacific region.
The sovereign controlled system will be augmented by contracted commercial satellite communications and industry partners, to assure resilient communications globally for the ADF across a range of space operations.
