U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps will use terminals to accelerate operational testing

ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT) received an order from the U.S. Army for initial production of the next generation Blue Force Tracking (BFT-2) transceivers for the Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below (FBCB2) satellite network upgrade. The units have demonstrated dramatic improvements in situational awareness accuracy and timeliness by reducing system latency, and providing lower cost-per-bit transmission and increased network capacity through an eight-times improvement in satellite efficiency. This next generation BFT transceiver also has been designed and tested to rigorous MIL-spec standards for ruggedness and reliability.

The order is a follow-on to multiple successful demonstrations of the new high-performance prototype BFT-2 satellite communications network, based on the ViaSat ArcLight® network technology.

“The award of an initial production contract reflects the U.S. Army desire to enhance battlefield effectiveness by field testing the performance of the BFT-2 system and placing it in the warfighter’s hands at the earliest opportunity,” said Mark Robinson, ViaSat program manager for BFT-2.

These initial production units will support FBCB2–BFT-2 joint U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps field and operational testing, scheduled to begin in mid-2009. Armed forces use Blue Force Tracking to view regularly updated troop positions on screens in their vehicles and aircraft to differentiate between friendly and enemy forces. In Army testing, the new advanced system has shown its ability to provide increased throughput, speed, and capacity. Advanced performance includes transmitting information up to 45 times faster than the current BFT rate and refreshing information at 30 times the current rate. All the improved performance enables new BFT applications, such as transmitting e-mail with attachments, images, and other computer documents, while using a flexible waveform which can be tailored to individual satellite channel characteristics. The new system will interoperate with the current system to provide an integrated common operational picture. This will be achieved without degrading the performance gains of the new system or disrupting operation of the current system as the network transitions to BFT-2.

The ViaSat ArcLight® product line, which provides broadband IP services to mobile platforms, has recently surpassed 100,000 flight hours on business jets, is building its installed base in the maritime market, and is supplying broadband to high speed trains in Europe. By leveraging ongoing developments in this and other company business areas, ViaSat plans to offer continued enhancements to the software-upgradable BFT-2 platform. Additionally, ViaSat’s use of open standards rather than proprietary interfaces can enable the U.S. Army to gain flexibility to address evolving requirements.

Safe Harbor Statement

Portions of this release, particularly statements about the performance and deliveries of ViaSat products and technology, may contain forward-looking statements regarding future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties. ViaSat wishes to caution you that there are some factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including but not limited to: contractual problems, product defects, manufacturing issues or delays, regulatory issues, technologies not being developed according to anticipated schedules, or that do not perform according to expectations; and increased competition and other factors affecting the telecommunications industry generally. In addition, please refer to the risk factors contained in ViaSat’s SEC filings available at www.sec.gov, including without limitation, ViaSat’s annual reports on Form 10-K and ViaSat’s quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. ViaSat undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements for any reason.

ArcLight is a registered trademark of ViaSat Inc.
Comsat Labs and Comsat Laboratories are tradenames of ViaSat, Inc. Neither Comsat Labs nor Comsat Laboratories is affiliated with COMSAT Corporation. “Comsat” is a registered trademark of COMSAT Corporation.

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