Kristen Smith 
Iridium Communications has received a five-year contract worth up to $85.8 million from the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command Commercial Space Office to update and enhance infrastructure that supports the Department of War’s Enhanced Mobile Satellite Services, or EMSS, program.
What Enhancements Will Iridium Perform Under the SITH Contract?
Iridium said Tuesday that work under the System Infrastructure Transformation and Hybridization, or SITH, contract will focus on technology refreshes, lifecycle upgrades and security improvements across the EMSS service center, technical support center and defense ground station. These facilities support global mobile voice, text and data communications, including in severe weather or harsh environments, for the DOW and government partners via the Iridium low Earth orbit satellite constellation.
How Does the Gateway Evolution Contract Relate to SITH?
SITH builds on prior EMSS gateway modernization efforts. In 2019, Iridium secured a five-year contract worth up to $76 million from the Defense Information Systems Agency. Known as the Gateway Evolution Contract, or GEC, it provided hardware and software improvements at the U.S. government’s dedicated Iridium gateway.
The GEC, which followed the earlier Gateway Modernization Efforts contract, enabled the government to leverage Iridium’s satellite constellation upgrade, Iridium NEXT.
SITH now becomes the latest mechanism for continued EMSS operational upgrades. Alongside SITH, Iridium continues to support related efforts under the EMSS airtime and capabilities and security sustainment services contracts awarded in 2019 and 2024, respectively.
Why Is the SITH Contract Important for Warfighter Communications?
According to Scott Scheimreif, Iridium’s executive vice president for government programs, the new contract will enable the continuous delivery of “resilient, secure and highly reliable mission-critical communications.”
“Our solutions with the Department of Defense are designed to serve every layer of the warfighter’s [Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency] plan. We look forward to supporting the U.S. and our allies through new technology introductions and ongoing collaboration,” Scheimreif added.
