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Pentagon approves high-speed network to link headquarters

The Pentagon approved a US$900 million project to build a high-speed fiber-optic network connecting US defense command posts around the world, allowing the government to begin awarding contracts to communications equipment makers.

John Stenbit, assistant secretary of defense for command, control and communications in Arlington, Virginia, said he approved the plan today and will sign a formal agreement in the next few days.

"There's a lot of money on the table," Stenbit said in an interview. "It's basically the decision that says we have done our homework."

The approval allows the Pentagon to purchase equipment for the Global Information Grid Bandwidth Expansion, or GIG-BE, project, which aims to transform the US Department of Defense's outdated communications system into a high-speed fiber-optic network. The network will allow more than 100 outposts worldwide to share satellite imagery, intelligence data and maps with a secure connection.

Makers of equipment and software such as Ciena Corp, Lucent Technologies Inc and Juniper Networks Inc, which have all suffered a slump in demand for their products, have said they may submit bids for some of the contracts.

The project is the first phase in an upgrade to the Defense Department's communications network. It will allow military planners in buildings connected to a network to share information from sources such as the National Image and Mapping Agency, the military's primary provider of digital and hard-copy maps. That information won't yet be available to military units on the move.

The Defense Department plans to build a laser-satellite communications system that will allow the data to be shared among, airplanes, ships and soldiers on the ground. That phase won't be complete until 2010, Stenbit said.
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