NCMEC>Iridium Satellite phones & service assist in ab
Press Release IRIDIUM AND TELENOR PROVIDE SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS FOR NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING & EXPLOITED CHILDREN® BETHESDA, Md. – April 24, 2006 – The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s® (NCMEC) “Team Adam” project has announced that they are using Iridium Satellite phones and service from Telenor Satellite Services. The phones and service are aiding in their efforts to assist in the most serious child abduction and sexual exploitation cases Team Adam is comprised of 55 retired federal, state and local investigators. These investigators act as consultants with law enforcement and the victim’s family. Team Adam determines what additional resources or assistance would be valuable in the search for the victim, in the investigation of the crime, and in terms of crisis management for the victim’s family. “Time is the enemy in the search for a missing child,” said Ernie Allen, NCMEC president and CEO. “Iridium satellite phones serve as a vital communication link for our consultants, who often work in rural and remote locations outside cellular telephone coverage areas.” “We are pleased to assist NCMEC by providing fast, reliable Iridium 9505A satellite phones for the important work they do,” said Greg Ewert, executive vice president of Iridium Satellite. “Telenor Satellite Services strongly supports the mission and work of NCMEC and is proud to assist the organization with ‘in-the-field’ satellite communications,” noted Britt Carina Horncastle, president of Telenor Satellite Services. NCMEC was established in 1984 to help prevent child abduction and sexual exploitation, help find missing children, and assist victims of child abduction and sexual exploitation, their families, and the professionals who serve them. Launched in 2003, Team Adam was named after the abducted and murdered son of NCMEC co-founders, John and Revé Walsh. John Walsh is the host of the popular television series, “America’s Most Wanted.” Team Adam was modeled after the National Transportation Safety Board crash team, which sends specialists to the scene of serious transportation incidents. Team Adam is deployed when NCMEC learns of a serious missing child case. There is no cost to the law enforcement agency or the victim’s family for Team Adam assistance. As of April 12, 2006, Team Adam has deployed 224 times, searching in 42 states, for a total of 253 children. About Iridium Satellite Iridium Satellite LLC (www.iridium.com) is the only provider of truly global satellite voice and data solutions with complete coverage of the earth (including oceans, airways and Polar Regions). Iridium delivers essential communications services to and from remote areas where no other form of communication is available. The Iridium constellation consists of 66 low-earth orbiting (LEO), cross-linked satellites and has multiple in-orbit spares. The constellation operates as a fully meshed network and is the largest commercial satellite constellation in the world. The Iridium service is ideally suited for industries such as maritime, aviation, government/military, emergency/humanitarian services, mining, forestry, oil and gas, heavy equipment, transportation and utilities. Iridium provides service to the U.S. Department of Defense. The company also designs, builds and sells its services, products and solutions through a worldwide network of more than 100 partners. About Telenor Satellite Services Telenor Satellite Service Holdings Inc. is the world’s preferred provider of global communications via satellite for customers on land, at sea, and in flight. Telenor’s expanded product portfolio offers broadband satellite solutions, on demand services, and an innovative menu of value-added services capable of meeting communications requirements of users around the globe. Telenor also offers The Source®, a Web-based account management system available exclusively to Telenor Service Providers. Telenor Satellite Services owns and operates a global network of teleports located at Eik (Norway), Southbury (Connecticut) and Santa Paula (California) in the United States, and operates VSAT hubs at facilities in Nittedal (Norway) and Prague (Czech Republic). The company uses the satellite systems of Inmarsat, Intelsat, Iridium, New Skies, Satmex, Thuraya and Telenor’s own satellites for its services. Telenor Satellite Services Web site is: www.telenor.com/satellite. About the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children NCMEC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. NCMEC's congressionally mandated CyberTipline, a reporting mechanism for child sexual exploitation, has handled more than 365,600 leads. Since its establishment in 1984, NCMEC has assisted law enforcement with more than 117,100 missing child cases, resulting in the recovery of more than 99,500 children. For more information about NCMEC, call its toll-free, 24-hour hotline at 1-800- THE-LOST or visit its Web site at www.missingkids.com. CONTACTS: Liz DeCastro Iridium Satellite LLC + 1 (301) 571-6257 liz.decastro@iridium.com Jim Rhodes Rhodes Communications +1 (757) 451-0602 jrhodes@rhodescomm.com Thomas Surface Telenor Satellite Services +1 (301) 838-7805 thomas.surface@telenor-usa.com NCMEC Communications Department 703-837-6111 media@ncmec.org