Did Satellite phones work after Hurricane Katrina?

Recently there have been a number of articles written stating that satellite phones did not work after hurricane Katrina. These articles are produced from information provided by people that basically did not follow the instructions on the proper use of a satellite phone. One of our customers informed me there was an article that stated an FBI agent was upset his satellite phone would not work in the basement where he was using the phone. If he was provided instructions on the proper usage of phone and understood the instructions he would have know you must be outdoors with an 80% view of the sky to receive good service. There were record breaking amounts of satellite phone airtime generated from both the Globalstar and Iridium satellite phones used in the area of the hurricane devastation. There have never been more phones sold and used in one area in such a short period of time in the history of the satellite phone industry. Both the Iridium and Globalstar satellite systems were running within capacity limits so the systems where not overloaded.

GlobalCom received complains from a few customers stating did not work after hurricane Katrina. After further investigation we found that 98% of the complaints were from improper usage of the satellite phone. We found the following issues where the result of user error and not satellite service issues.

The most important procedure when using a satellite phone is you must be “outside” away from tall structures which include buildings. You must have an 80% view of the sky to receive good service. In downtown New York City you would have a very limited view of the sky you most likely would not receive a satellite signal unless one of the satellites happens to be directly overhead. You would unlikely to receive a satellite signal due to the tall buildings. You must be able to have “line of site” to at least one of the satellites to be able get a signal. The FBI agent in the article I had mentioned earlier was in a basement so the structure of the building would have blocked any satellite signal from reaching the phone.

With the Globalstar satellite phone you have two antennas one small antenna is on top of the phone used for cellular service only. The other satellite antenna is tucked behind the phone and is the size of a “hot dog”. All the Globalstar phones shipped from GlobalCom are in satellite mode only so for the unit to function in satellite mode you must first deploy the satellite antenna. Certain customers where not reading the Globalstar quick start guide nor were they reading the manual which also provides this information on the proper deployment of the satellite antenna.

When using all satellite phones you must “wait” till the unit registers with the satellite system “before” attempting to use the phone. This is different from cellular phones where you can use the phone as soon as the phone is power up. With satellite phones the signal must travel hundreds of miles to the satellite constellation then back down to the gateway so that takes a few moments to accomplish. When you first power up a Globalstar phone you should receive signal strength in the display but the phone may take as long as two minutes to register. The user would know the phone was registered when a letter “i” appears in the right side of the display. Only then can the user make an outbound call or receive an inbound call. With the Iridium phone you know it is registered with the satellite system when the word “Iridium” appears on the display.

The last issue we found has to do with simple common sense. There were a few customers that were using the satellite phone properly but they were calling a local landline or cellular phone in the area of the hurricane devastation where landline and cellular systems where either damaged, disrupted or overloaded with calls. A satellite phone will not repair or make a disrupted landline or cellular system function by calling that landline or cellular phone. This is just common sense. If you want truly 100% communication in an area where all the landline and cellular phones are disrupted all the people of a group or organization using satellite phones would need to use a satellite phone with the same service provider. When calling from satellite phone to satellite phone landlines are never used. In the case of Globalstar the signal goes up to the satellite down to the ground station then back up to the satellites where it is then sent down to the other satellite phone user never traveling though a landline.

GlobalCom provides a quick start guide with every phone shipped from our stock. This quick start guide gives all the basic operation instructions “in large print” needed to operate the phone. The factory manual is also shipped phones that are purchased which will give more detail on the operation. We have found customers generally will not read the manual but they will read a few sheets of paper in large print which appear to be important to read. During the extreme demand after hurricane Katrina GlobalCom found it necessary to directly ship the phones from Globalstar to the customer. Unfortunately these phones did not have the GlobalCom quick start guide enclosed but they did include a manual. At GlobalCom’s request Globalstar now sends a “large print” quick start guide with every phone which is very similar to the GlobalCom guide.

GlobalCom was one of the largest suppliers of satellite phones in the U.S. and was one of the leading suppliers of satellite phones to the area affected by Katrina. The old saying goes “When all else fails follow instructions”.

For Hurricane Preparedness information click here