Intelsat Continues to Sharpen Disaster Recovery Capabilities

The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season was the third most active year ever,according to the National Hurricane Center. The season produced 21 named storms, with total damages estimated at $80.683 billion .

Experts are predicting the 2022 season will also be above average.

As the severity of every storm season continues to grow, Intelsat is working to strengthen its connectivity network to make sure storm victims can get reconnected quickly.

To prepare for the potential impact of severe weather, Intelsat is working with a leading U.S. mobile network operator to help strengthen its cellular backhaul solution so customers and end-users will stay connected even in the most challenging times. The solution provides the operator with secure auxiliary network backhaul – providing additional connectivity from cell towers to the rest of the voice and data network – for existing coverage areas when outages occur due to terrestrial backhaul failures. This risk prevention approach will enable seamless service restoration, with communities staying connected, when they need it most.

Cellular network connectivity solution ensures service continuity in case of unexpected outages

When a natural disaster strikes, connectivity plays a crucial role, enabling people to connect with family and friends, allowing businesses to quickly operate again, and supporting hospitals and first responders that need real-time updates on the situation and communication with victims. Compromised or destroyed cell towers and power outages often create significant disruption to connectivity, hampering rescue services and slowing down recovery, and challenges are compounded in remote areas that might already be underserved or unserved completely due to economic and feasibility obstacles to deploying fiber or microwave backhaul.

Satellite technology is uniquely positioned to provide immediate, reliable connectivity when electrical grids or terrestrial infrastructure are damaged or destroyed following natural disasters. Satellites are often the only way to communicate, track critical assets and access post-disaster imagery. Rather than waiting for disaster to strike, Intelsat works closely with mobile network operators ahead of storm season and is fully integrated into their respective disaster recovery planning and operations.

“The strong relationship we’ve developed with mobile network operators proved crucial to developing an out-of-the-box solution that responds to their specific disaster recovery and cellular backhaul needs,” said Jean Philippe Gillet, SVP Global Sales, and GM, Networks, at Intelsat. “The severity of these storms is a blatant reminder of the damages Mother Nature can inflict – and of the need to be proactive and adopt risk prevention solutions to limit any potential impact.”

Customers know they can count on Intelsat to deliver much-needed connectivity, no matter what the weather brings. Now, Intelsat is developing the world’s first global 5G satellite-based, software-defined, unified network of networks that will further advance services with enhanced simplicity, coverage, economics, and performance – without compromising on the service quality and reliability that have defined Intelsat for more than 50 years.

The 2022 Atlantic hurricane season begins on June 1 and ends November 30.