Emergency communication, disaster control, blackout

In the event of a disaster, the landline and mobile network may collapse immedi­ately. However, if you are dependent on commu­ni­cation — especially in emergencies — you should provide a satellite phone ready to use.

Mobile devices

We recommend easy-to-use and intuitive devices such as the Iridium 9555, Iridium 9575 Extreme or the Inmarsat IsatPhone 2 or Thuraya XT-LITE, Thuraya XT-PRO.

Iridium, Inmarsat and Thuraya are both the device manufac­turers and the satellite network operators. Unlike with mobile telephony, neither SIM cards nor devices can be operated in third-party networks. An Iridium satellite phone will only work with an Iridium SIM card and only sees the Iridium satel­lites. The same condi­tions apply to Inmarsat and Thuraya.

Solutions that turn your smart­phone into a satellite phone we expressly do not recommend for emergency commu­ni­cation. In an emergency, there could be diffi­culties in pairing the satellite phone with the smart­phone or the appro­priate app on the smart­phone may no longer be up-to-date.

When deciding on a satellite network, you should consider who you want or need to commu­nicate with. Unfor­tu­nately, it is very expensive to make calls from one satellite network to another. Of course, when it comes to human lives, money should be no object. However if you can arrange it, you should avoid making calls between different satellite networks.

Once you have purchased you satellite equipment, don’t leave it in the cupboard all the time waiting for an emergency. In worst case they probably won’t work. In addition to technical mainte­nance such as battery care and firmware updates, the emergency personal should also be familiar with its operation.

For all emergency commu­ni­cation devices, we only recommend postpaid contract cards and no prepaid solutions that shall be topped up when needed (i.e. in an emergency). Even during a small-scale disaster like the one in the German Ahr Valley in July 2021, we had a lot of calls to reactivate and top up cards as quickly as possible. If a disaster occurs where we are only partially available, that is not a solution. Similarly, in the event of a large-scale disaster, we would not be able to serve you in time due to large volume of requests.

Conclusion: We should not be part of your rescue processes. An emergency device should always be ready for use. You should ensure this by:

• Frequently test calls
  Reason is either you know whether the device actually works (including keypad, micro­phone, speaker), and you stay familiar with operation und features.
• Battery care
  The batteries inserted in phones as well as any spare batteries should be charged regularly and shluld be at least partially discharged. This can be done either manually, or by external battery chargers with charge management as additional accessories.
• Firmware updates
  It is really essential to keep the device’s firmware up to date. Please sign up for our Update-Service for your devices. So you will be informed automat­i­cally when a new firmware is released and you can update your device shortly.

Devices for the operations center

Unlike your smart­phone, satellite phones need a visual link to the satellite. In buildings this only works with an external antenna. It is important to note the satellite systems differ­ences: Iridium with earth-orbiting satel­lites (LEO) requires an antenna location at the highest point of the building with a maximum unobstructed view to the sky. Inmarsat and Thuraya “only” require a clear view to the given geosta­tionary (fixed located) satellite, so the antenna can also be mounted on the wall of the building if the satellite can be seen from this position.

You have two hardware options:

Mobile phone and docking station

You use the same telephone that your mobile emergency services carry — combined with a docking station. The docking station, also called docker or dock for short, is connected to the external antenna via special high-frequency cables. The models provide an analogue RJ-11 interface for integration in analogue telephone systems. Ideally, the docker has an uninter­ruptible power supply (UPS). If necessary, the phone can be taken out of the docker and used on the move.

Base station

A base station consists (only) of a terminal and antenna with corre­sponding cable. There is no interface contact as with mobile phones and dockers. With the exception of the Thuraya MarineStar, all models have an internal SIP server for the connection to or integration of VoIP telephones and/or digital telephone systems. The Thales (Iridium Certus Service) and Explorer (Inmarsat BGAN Service) terminals have a fixed SIP IP address that cannot be changed; with the LT series, SIP can be set flexible as a DHCP server, client or as a fixed, freely selec­table IP address.

Base station with one voice line: These devices are operated with the same service and therefore the same SIM card as the mobile phones (exception Explorer 540). Please note the maximum cable lengths and satellite system require­ments for the antenna location.

Base station with 2–3 voice lines and internet: Alter­na­tively, there is the Iridium Certus service, which offers 2 or even 3 simul­ta­neous voice lines and data transfers of up to 700 kbps. You’ll need an external antenna for those devices either.

Devices for vehicles

The combi­nation of docking station plus satellite telephone or systems with data trans­mission and telephony are also available for emergency commu­ni­ca­tions in vehicles. For example, with the Inmarsat Explorer 323 or the Iridium MissionLink 200 and 700, commu­ni­cation is also possible while driving.