TORRANCE, Calif., 29 June 2005. L-3 Communications Electron Technologies, Inc. (L-3 ETI) announced today that it has received a contract from Orbital Sciences Corp. to provide C- and Ku-band Linearized Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers (LTWTAs) for a new communications satellite being built for PanAmSat Corp.
The satellite, to be called PAS-11, will carry up to 18 active Ku-band LTWTAs and 16 active C-band LTWTAs.
In communication satellites, TWTAs are used to amplify and transmit radio frequency signals back to Earth for a variety of applications, including voice, video and data. On satellites that carry a large number of signals, a linearizer is often added to the TWT to cancel the amplifier distortion and the final assembly is referred to as an LTWTA. LTWTAs result in clearer communications that benefit satellite end customers.
This is Orbital's seventh order to L-3 ETI over the past few years, furthering a relationship that began with the PanAmSat Galaxy program and most recently went on to include the Optus D1 and D2 programs.
"We are pleased to have been selected for the PanAmSat 11 program," said Kevin Mallon, president of L-3 ETI. "Our relationship with Orbital Sciences is extremely important and L-3 ETI appreciates the confidence Orbital has shown in us. We are also proud of our long-standing position as a supplier of key equipment on PanAmSat satellites."
L-3 ETI, based in Torrance, Calif., is a leading provider of high-reliability products for space and defense customers. ETI's primary business area includes the manufacture of high-reliability TWTs, EPCs and TWTAs for space and defense applications. The company also offers a full catalog of space-qualified passive microwave payload products and state-of-the-art satellite electric propulsion systems.
Headquartered in New York City, L-3 Communications is a leading provider of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems, secure communications systems, aircraft modernization, training and government services and is a merchant supplier of a broad array of high technology products. Its customers include the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, selected U.S. Government intelligence agencies and aerospace prime contractors. For more information, see www.L-3Com.com.
