 12.13.00 Boy Scouts Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro With Help From Mackay Communications RALEIGH, NC (December 13, 2000) - When twelve Boy Scouts from Troop 137 ventured from their hometown of Franklin, Tennessee to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak, in July 2000, they did not have to rely on signal flags or Morse Code for communication. Despite being half a world away, these Boy Scouts were able to keep "in touch" with the help of Nera’s "WorldPhone," a Mini-M satellite telephone - donated for use by Mackay Communications, a leader in communications and electronics equipment and services for the marine and land-mobile industries. The Boy Scouts used the WorldPhone for voice as well as daily data transmissions to update their website http://www.troop137.com/index5/Africa/Africa.html, thus enabling fellow scouts and family back home to log on and view the progress of their five-day, six-mile hike ascending to Mt. Kiliminjaro’s summit, elevation 19,341 feet. Complimentary satellite airtime service was provided by COMSAT of Bethesda, Maryland. "Mackay is very excited to have provided the Boy Scouts with a unique way to share their expedition," said Ben Pratt, Mackay Communications’ Marketing Vice President. "The wireless portability of Nera’s WorldPhone provided a perfect solution for the Scouts’ communications needs in a remote environment." "We never experienced any problems with the phone and the voice quality was very clear," said Lou Reinisch, Committee Chairman of Boy Scout Troop 137. "Having the satellite phone and being able to communicate back home with family members added a dimension to our trip that I could not have imagined. That immediate link allowed the boys to relate the experiences as they happened." Transmitting via Inmarsat’s geostationary satellites, Nera’s WorldPhone provides reliable access to the international dial-up telephone, fax and data networks, with high-quality global coverage. The integrated WorldPhone "system" contains an antenna and RF Transceiver in the lid with the phone unit in the base. The compact unit is only 2.25" 10" x 10" in size and weighs a mere 5.3 pounds, including rechargeable batteries that provide three hours talk time and 50 hours of standby. The WorldPhone is designed by Norwegian-based Nera SatCom AS, one of the world’s leading manufacturer of digital satellite communications equipment. Mackay Communications, Inc. offers a complete line of electronic products and For additional photo formats, including color transparencies, 35mm slides, b/w prints or electronic files of the attached images, please call Amy Johnson at BtB Marketing Communications, 919-872-8172, or email amy@btbmarketing.com. |
