Honeywell Awarded Army Contract To Maintain Presidential Hotline

• Honeywell Staff Maintain 24/7 Support for Direct Communication Link At Detrick Earth Station

(Phoenix, March 18, 2010) -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) announced today that it has been awarded an $8.4 million five-year U.S. Army contract for the operation and maintenance of the Detrick Earth Station, home to the Direct Communication Link, known as the Washington-Moscow Presidential Hotline.

"Honeywell's expertise ensures this vital connection between the U.S. and Russia is always available," said Vince Trim, president, Honeywell Technology Solutions, Inc. "Honeywell provides 24/7 Russian linguist support and technical support for earth station operations over the Russian satellite network."


The communications circuits supported by the Detrick Earth Station facility have visibility at both the U.S. and Russian governments, and the Honeywell team at the Detrick Earth Station provides the performance level required to meet those challenges.

In addition to the Direct Communication Link, the Detrick Earth Station provides communications links with the Russian Federation in support of the State Department's Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, the U.S. Space Command's Joint Data Exchange Center, the White House Communications Agency, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

The Direct Communications Link system was first established by the U.S. and Soviet governments via undersea cable in August 1963, in the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis. In the early 1970s, an agreement was signed by then President Richard Nixon and Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev to employ satellite communications in the hotline system. This mission was directed to Fort Detrick in the mid-1970s, and the Detrick Earth Station was officially activated 31 years ago in 1978.

Source : Honeywell International, Inc. (NYSE: HON)