Iridium Satellite LLC said it provides global satellite communications links for the 20 sailors competing in the Vendee Globe single-handed, round-the-world sailboat race, which began last month.
Geolink, a supplier of communications equipment for the race, has outfitted each of the Open 60 sailboats with either a Sky Connect unit or an Iridium 9505 terminal.
The race began in Les Sables d’Olonne, France and will lead the sailors south to the Cape of Good Hope, across the Indian Ocean and South Pacific to Cape Horn and back across the Atlantic Ocean to Les Sables d’Olonne.
“During much of the race, the sailors will be in extreme southern latitudes, where coverage from geostationary communications satellites can be unreliable,” said Don Thoma, executive vice president of Iridium Satellite. Iridium’s constellation ensures sailors that “they will have seamless, uninterrupted communications throughout the voyage,” he added.
