Skynet 5A communications platform now assisting UK forces

While military installations worldwide have been pondering the launch of various communications satellites, Paradigm Secure Communications' Skynet 5A has not only been already deployed, but it's busy workin' on the weekends as well. The arrangement has been dubbed the "most expensive private finance initiative ever signed by the Ministry of Defense," but the £3.6 billion ($7.12 billion) project is currently assisting UK forces stationed in Afghanistan. The spacecraft itself was deployed in March, and has enabled a "a dramatic improvement in their communications capability." Furthermore, the next two sister sats should hit the galaxy soon to give beefed up capacity (2.5x, to be exact) to the Army, Royal Navy, and RAF, as the Skynet 5B is slated to get lit before the year's end, while Skynet 5C (the in-orbit spare) should go live in mid-2008. Ah, low ping times, clear walkie-talkie conversations, and quick downloads from remote areas of the world -- now that's a reasonable stress reliever after a hard day on the battlefield.

[daniel @ May 14th 2007 2:34AM]

thats quite an unfortunate name you think they would pick a name that wasnt synonomous with computers taking over the world

[adam @ May 14th 2007 2:38AM]

The Skynet Funding Bill is passed. The system goes on-line August 4th, 1997. Human decisions are removed from strategic defense. Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug.

In all fairness I believe I heard somewhere this project is so old it actually predates the terminator.

[JL @ May 14th 2007 2:48AM]

You may be thinking of Colossus: The Forbin Project - If you haven't seen it it's basically USA builds supercomputer to run defense, Soviet Union does same - The two supercomps link up and say to hell with humanity, we can run the world better and impose their will on us..

[adam @ May 14th 2007 3:07AM]

Nope, I'm talking about the skynet line of satellites, as mentioned in this post. Skynet 1 went up in the late 60's so just making the point that terminator didn't coin skynet, but the brits 20 years earlier.

[JL @ May 14th 2007 9:01AM]

I gotcha, you were talking about this project itself, not another movie.. my bad..

[Ignacio @ May 14th 2007 7:16PM]

"terminator didn't coin skynet, but the brits 20 years earlier."

Dude, you're not taking into account the "time-travel" factor... ;-)

[LordPaul @ May 14th 2007 3:50AM]

Paradigm sounds a bit like Cyberdyne too, maybe Terminator wasn't a work of fiction afterall.

[R. Cabell @ May 14th 2007 4:33PM]

Why is that " series" satellite showing a coverage area in the US? Is the UK planning to reclaim New England!?

[Miguel @ May 14th 2007 4:10PM]

Actually, it's shining on Newfoundland and New Brunswick, provinces of Canada, a Commonwealth country. Just like South Africa that you see lit up. At the same time, wee Egypt and the southeast island nations of Asia...maybe the Brits are highlighting their old empire. Cue theme music.