Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has announced that the new Satellite Ground Station near Geraldton, Western Australia is now fully operational.
Delivered under Joint Project 2008 Phase 3F in partnership with BAE Systems Australia, Satellite Ground Station – West will provide an anchoring capability to Wideband Global Satellite-Communications satellites primarily located over the Indian Ocean.
The Program includes two military hosted payloads on commercial satellites, a military satellite as part of the US Wideband Global Satellite-Communications system, ground infrastructure across Australia and deployed terminals with accompanying network management capabilities.
Minister Reynolds said the new Satellite Ground Station near Geraldton marked an important milestone in the Government’s commitment to building Australia’s sovereign satellite capability.
“The Defence Satellite Communications Program is providing the Australian Defence Force with a suite of strategic and tactical satellite communication capabilities,” the Minister continued.
“Satellite Ground Station – West will provide Defence with greater access to the overall capacity available from Wideband Global Satellite-Communications satellites.
“This offers real-time operational and logistical information which is essential for command and control of deployed forces.”
