SolaCom enables FS21 solution for Lockheed Martin

System goes live on February 22, 2007

GATINEAU, QC - February 28, 2007 - The Lockheed Martin Automated Flight Service Station team has announced the achievement of a major milestone at 1a.m. EST on February 22. At that time the flight service network's Washington, D.C., Hub went live, and began using a new mission operating system called Flight Services for the 21st Century (FS21).

The FS21 system uses a SolaCom LibertySTAR communications solution that leverages SolaCom's proven digital ATC voice communication platform in a hybrid system, merging the best of two worlds: the speed and reliability of Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) networks, and the enhanced capabilities of today's VoIP network.

"We're very pleased that the solution we provided for Lockheed Martin has enabled them to launch the new FS21 network on schedule and on budget," says Franz Plangger, President and CEO of SolaCom Technologies. "We're proud of our product and engineering team, and pleased to be a contributor to this pioneering, and very challenging project."

The hybrid VCS is a fully digital, totally non-blocking voice communication system, with a distributed, parallel operating core that provides high reliability, fault tolerant voice communications. The core consists of a TDM switch, an IP switch, and interfaces to the outside world, with redundant circuit boards so there is no single point of failure that can lead to an interruption in communications.

The recently completed Washington Hub is a state-of-the-art Automated Flight Service Station located near Dulles International Airport in suburban Northern Virginia. Specialists at the facility provide aviation services such as weather briefings, inflight information, flight plan filing, Notices to Airmen (NOTAMS), clearances, and more to pilots.

The facility is the first of its kind to operate under Lockheed Martin's FS21 system, a system designed to modernize and streamline the flow of information transfer to and from pilots by allowing all flight service stations to share the same set of nationwide data.

Click here to view the FS21 announcement from Lockheed Martin.