MCLEAN, Va., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) today announced Rockwell Collins (NYSE:COL) as the newest Iridium Certus service provider for the aviation industry.  Rockwell Collins will be adding the service to its comprehensive suite of aircraft connectivity applications for commercial, government and ARINCDirect^SM business customers. 

In addition to being a service provider, Rockwell Collins is also a value added manufacturer (VAM) for the design and production of Iridium Certus terminals.  As a VAM and a service provider, Rockwell Collins will play a critical role in delivering the next-generation L-band broadband solution to customers around the world.

"Iridium Certus will be an important new service addition to meet the connectivity needs of commercial, business and government aircraft," said Michael DiGeorge, vice president of Commercial Aviation Services for Rockwell Collins. "For our ARINCDirect business aviation operators, Iridium Certus will offer small form factor antennas and terminals which are ideal for operators of smaller aircraft requiring internet connectivity. For our airline and government customers, the Iridium Certus service will enable a variety of capabilities for cockpit safety, enhanced aircraft reporting, graphical weather, EFBs and other operational aircraft services."

Iridium Certus will bring broadband functionality, with enterprise-grade quality of service, to the aviation industry no matter where in the world an aircraft may fly. The service will soon deliver the fastest L-band broadband speeds on the market at a competitive price with industry-leading small form factor antennas and terminals. The Iridium Certus high-gain antenna (HGA) solutions will provide data speed options of up to 704 Kbps, and eventually as high as approximately 1.4 Mbps following full Iridium^® NEXT deployment, with an antenna size of approximately 24 x 10 x 6cm, while the low-gain antenna (LGA) solutions will enable data speeds of up to 176 Kbps.  

"Adding Rockwell Collins as an Iridium Certus service provider is a major milestone for the program," said Michael Hooper, director and general manager of Iridium's Aviation Line of Business. "Given the FAA's recent movement toward adopting SATCOM as a primary means of onboard communications, we believe Iridium Certus will be that much more of a shake up to the status quo within the aviation industry, bringing new capabilities, smaller hardware, faster speeds and competitive price packages. Like the services Rockwell Collins offers, Iridium Certus will support all areas of aircraft connectivity, from the flight deck to the cabin, regardless of location."

Initial flight trials will take place later this year, with Iridium Certus commercial service introduction for aviation users expected in mid-2019. Commercial service introduction for other verticals, such as maritime and land-mobile, is planned for 2018. Iridium Certus is powered by Iridium NEXT, the Company's next-generation satellite constellation, currently being deployed.  To date, there have been six successful Iridium NEXT launches, deploying 55 new satellites to orbit. Two more launches are planned for 2018, each carrying 10 Iridium NEXT satellites, for a total of 75 launched, with 66 in the operational constellation and nine serving as on-orbit spares. The seventh launch is currently targeted for July 25, 2018 out of SpaceX's west coast launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

For more information about Iridium Certus, please visit https://www.iridium.com/company/industryleadership/iridiumcertus

For more information about Rockwell Collins' ARINCDirect, please visit http://www.arincdirect.com/

For more information about Iridium NEXT, please visit www.IridiumNEXT.com

About Iridium Communications Inc.

Iridium is the only mobile voice and data satellite communications network that spans the entire globe. Iridium enables connections between people, organizations and assets to and from anywhere, in real time. Together with its ecosystem of partner companies, Iridium delivers an innovative and rich portfolio of reliable solutions for markets that require truly global communications. The company has a major development program underway for its next-generation network — Iridium NEXT. Iridium Communications Inc. is headquartered in McLean, Va., U.S.A., and its common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol IRDM. For more information about Iridium products, services and partner solutions, visit www.iridium.com.

Forward Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not purely historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company has based these statements on its current expectations and the information currently available to us. Forward-looking statements in this presentation include statements regarding the deployment and capabilities of the Iridium NEXT constellation and products and services to be offered over the constellation, including Iridium Certus, as well as the potential market for such products and services. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the words "anticipates," "may," "can," "believes," "expects," "projects," "intends," "likely," "will," "to be" and other expressions that are predictions or indicate future events, trends or prospects. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Iridium to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, uncertainties regarding potential delays in the Iridium NEXT deployment, the development and functionality of Iridium NEXT and related products and services, and the company's ability to maintain the health, capacity and content of its satellite constellation, as well as general industry and economic conditions, and competitive, legal, governmental and technological factors. Other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements include those factors listed under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on February 22, 2018, and in the Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2018, filed with the SEC on April 26, 2018, as well as other filings Iridium makes with the SEC from time to time. There is no assurance that Iridium's expectations will be realized. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if Iridium's underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those expected, estimated or projected. Iridium's forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and Iridium undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements.

Press Contact: 
Jordan Hassin
Iridium Communications Inc.
+1 (646) 872-0067
Jordan.Hassin@iridium.com
Twitter: @IridiumComm

Investor Contact:
Kenneth Levy
Iridium Communications Inc.
+1 (703) 287-7570
Ken.Levy@iridium.com  

SOURCE Iridium Communications Inc.