About Iridium Certus

General Questions about the Iridium Certus^®:

1. What is Iridium OpenPort?
Iridium OpenPort terminals are no longer manufactured and have been replaced by Iridium Certus.

2. What are the advantages of Iridium Certus over other satellite communication services?
Iridium Certus provides global service including the polar regions. Various competing services are available including VSAT and Inmarsat FleetBroadband which do not provide coverage in the polar regions, but do provide higher data rates. Currently the fastest data speed available by Certus terminals is 704 kbps down / 352 kbps up. 

3. How do I make a call?
Iridium Certus can be configured in 3 ways:

• Captain's line (may be configured to require a PIN before use)
• Crew line (individual prepaid cards can be used to limit usage)
• Normal line (unrestricted calling)

The user will enter the number to be called using the standard Iridium format: 00+country code+area code+phone number. For the Iridium Pilot, the number must be followed by the # to initiate the call.

4. How do I call an Iridium Certus?
It is not possible to call a Crew line.  If the line is configured as a Normal or a Captain's voice line there are potentially three methods to call it:

1. Local Access Number: A U.S. number can be assigned for a small additional monthly fee.
2. Two-stage dialing: To do this from the U.S., dial 1-480-768-2500 (which is the Iridium 2-stage platform). When the auto-attendant answers, the caller needs to enter the Iridium satellite phone's 12-digit Iridium mobile number. The 2-stage call will be charged to the Iridium phone's account. The rate for 2-stage calls will be found in your service agreement.
3. Direct Dial: From the U.S. dial 011 followed by the 12-digit Iridium mobile number. Direct dialed calls are paid for by the calling party and there is no charge to the Iridium phone's account. WARNING: The cost for Direct Dialed calls to Iridium phones tends to be very high so the calling party should contact their long distance carrier and become aware of the rate before making this type of call.

5. Where should I install the antenna?
The antenna unit must be mounted in an area free of obstructions with a clear unobstructed view of the sky in all directions horizon to horizon. In marine applications, the antenna must be mounted above the radar and outside the beam path.  We also recommend that it be at least 20 feet above the water line. The antenna should be mounted above areas accessible to passengers to avoid passenger exposure to antenna radiation.