SKEC: Connecting the Force to the Satellites — Terminals, Services and the User Segment That Makes SKYNET Work

Overview

A constellation of military communications satellites is only as useful as the terminals and services that connect users to it. SKYNET 6 provides the space segment — the satellites in orbit — but it is SKYNET Enduring Capability that delivers the user segment: the ground terminals, network services and integration that enable soldiers, sailors, aircrew and headquarters staff to actually access satellite communications. Without SKEC, the multi-billion-pound SKYNET constellation would be a capability in orbit with no way to exploit it on the ground.

SKEC encompasses SATCOM services, terminal equipment and network integration delivering user access to the SKYNET constellation. It includes Narrowband Satellite Services and Wideband Satellite Services programmes that provide user equipment and services. The programme integrates with the SKYNET 6 constellation and commercial SATCOM augmentation. Terminal equipment ranges from man-portable systems that a patrol can carry into the field, to fixed strategic installations at major headquarters, with maritime terminals for the fleet and airborne terminals for aircraft in between.

The programme is ongoing, with continuous capability evolution aligned with the SKYNET 6 constellation. NSS and WSS contracts have been awarded and are in execution, with multiple industry partners including Airbus, CGI, Babcock and others delivering different elements of the user segment.

Strategic Purpose and Objectives

Delivering Satellite Communications to the User

SATCOM services delivery is essential for exploiting the investment in the SKYNET constellation. Terminals and services enable operational use across deployed and fixed locations, from strategic headquarters to tactical patrol bases. Key elements include strategic terminals for major headquarters, tactical terminals for deployed forces, maritime terminals for the fleet, airborne terminals for aircraft, and service management and assurance.

SKEC’s integration with commercial SATCOM extends capacity for bandwidth-intensive applications. As military demand for data continues to grow, the ability to seamlessly integrate sovereign SKYNET capacity with commercial SATCOM services ensures that users have access to the bandwidth they need without compromising the availability of sovereign capacity for the most critical communications.

The programme also ensures that the user segment keeps pace with the space segment. As SKYNET 6 delivers enhanced capabilities — higher bandwidth, anti-jam protection, flexible beam shaping — the terminals and services must evolve to exploit those capabilities. SKEC ensures this alignment, preventing a situation where the space segment offers capabilities that the user segment cannot access.

Budget and Financial Structure

Programme Value

The NSS and WSS programmes are valued at £2 billion or more over their programme lifecycles. Multiple contracts for terminals, services and integration involve various industry partners. The scale of investment reflects the breadth of the user segment — thousands of terminals across all three services, extensive network management infrastructure and continuous service delivery.

Budget Division and Holder

Strategic Command holds capability authority. DE&S manages contract administration. User commands provide requirements and manage operational employment. Strategic Command manages the programme through the SATCOM programme office, with DE&S administering multiple industry contracts.

Procurement and Acquisition

Acquisition Pipeline

SKEC is in ongoing development and delivery, with continuous capability evolution aligned with the SKYNET 6 constellation. NSS and WSS contracts have been awarded and are in execution.

Tender Information

Multiple contracts are in place including with Airbus, CGI, Babcock and other providers. Competitive procurement is used for various elements, with contract details available through DE&S and the MOD Defence Sourcing Portal.

Why It Matters

SKEC matters because the most capable satellite constellation in the world is worthless without the terminals and services that connect users to it. A soldier in a forward operating base, a warship in the North Atlantic, a Typhoon pilot on a combat air patrol — all depend on SKEC to deliver the SATCOM services that enable them to communicate, receive orders, transmit intelligence and coordinate with other forces. SKEC is the programme that translates the strategic investment in SKYNET into operational capability at the point of need.

The programme’s significance is also commercial. At £2 billion or more across the NSS and WSS programmes, SKEC represents a substantial and sustained market for SATCOM terminal manufacturers, network service providers, systems integrators and support companies. The diversity of user requirements — from man-portable to strategic fixed, from narrowband to wideband, from land to maritime to air — creates a broad industrial opportunity that spans multiple technology domains.

For industry, SKEC offers opportunity in satellite terminal design and manufacture, network management systems, SATCOM service provision, antenna technology, signal processing, secure communications, system integration and through-life support. The multi-contractor delivery model — with Airbus, CGI, Babcock and others all playing significant roles — ensures a broad and competitive supplier base. Companies with expertise in military SATCOM terminals, network services and commercial-military SATCOM integration will find sustained demand as the programme evolves alongside the SKYNET 6 constellation.

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