As commercial satellite communications have become an essential component of military operations, the U.S. government should create a single, integrated commercial satellite communications service planning and procurement process to deal with commercial communications providers, an industry executive said.

American Government Services (AGS) President and CEO David Helfgott called for the plan at a Washington Space Business Roundtable luncheon June 23 in Washington, DC.

The demand for satellite bandwidth in the United States is predicted to grow due to network-centric warfare doctrine and bandwidth-consuming applications such as imagery, video and unmanned aerial vehicle communications.

Even after implementation of the U.S. Department of Defense’s Wideband Gapfiller satellite system, the gap between wideband requirements and available bandwidth will be enormous, Helfgott said. Long-term, direct procurement models are now required in order to fulfill the critical demand, he said.

As a part of this, he suggested that a long-term, cooperative requirements definition process be instituted as well as a multi-level procurement strategy for commercial satellite bandwidth, network solutions or equipment. Multi-year leasing of satellite capacity from satellite operators also should be encouraged in order to drive efficiency and price.

The longer the contract, the better, Helfgott said. Five years is a good way to start, he said.