Ocala, Florida, March 02/Internet --- Antennas for Communications (AFC) announced today that it was awarded a contract with Raytheon Corporation for the design, manufacture and installation of a 41-ft. (12.6-m) diameter 2-layer sandwich impedance matched dielectric radome for Kwajalein in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. In order to provide an air-conditioned environment for personnel and operating equipment, the 2-layer sandwich wall radome is composed of a thin membrane outer skin and an internal layer of electromagnetic thermal insulating foam. The 2-layer sandwich radome departs from standard space frame radome techniques where the thin membrane wall, by itself, prohibits the use of air-conditioning and heating systems to control radome internal temperature. In addition to the 2-layer sandwich wall, the radome flange framework is impedance matched to reduce transmission loss and scattering into the antenna sidelobe pattern. Impedance matching methods make a significant contribution to radomes protecting Intelsat earth station equipment.

"Dielectric radomes offer our customers significant value in harsh salt wet environments" said Dr. Ronald S. Posner, AFC's CEO. "Older technologies, such as metal space frame radomes, have considerable corrosion, cannot be insulated or impedance matched."