Verizon Business has been appointed by the US Air Force to upgrade 4G/5G infrastructure, including additional C-Band carriers and new “macro builds” and small cells, at 35 Air Force bases throughout the US. The contract is part of the Air Force’s so-called ‘offer-to-lease’ (OTL) programme to upgrade critical comms infrastructure. Verizon said it represents its “seventh OTL win in eight attempts”, and follows parallel OTL contracts in 2019, 2021 and 2023, meaning it is engaged in OTL upgrades at 36-odd (“three dozen”) Air Force bases.
This includes a major standalone 5G (5G SA) network deployment at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida. The new contract covers installations at Air Force bases in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Washington DC, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. In total, Verizon is delivering 5G and other wireless network services across 72 bases in the US, it said.
Its 5G portfolio with the federal government, and the US Department of Defense specifically, is strong, it noted. The focus is on “higher speeds, increased bandwidth, and lower latency for base personnel and surrounding communities”, it said. Maggie Hallbach, senior vice president for public sector business at Verizon, said: “This is [our] seventh OTL win out of eight attempts, which serves as a testament to the trust the Air Force has in… our network, as well as the quality of the professional and managed services expertise they gain from our people.”
The new infrastructure will help the Armed Forces in the US to pursue “strategic digital transformation priorities”. These include supporting flight line test equipment, “animated” (AR/VR) simulation and training, “full-motion and high-definition” video for telemedicine for airmen, and AI for biometric identification. In January last year, Verizon won a $1 million deal to provide 5G coverage to the Army Garrison Hawaii’s Helemano Military Reservation via a newly constructed cell tower (‘Dragon Tower’) to serve military families, personnel, and visitors.
In June last year, the Department of Homeland Security awarded Verizon Business a 10-year deal, valued at $176 million, to provide a government emergency telecoms service (GETS) and wireless priority service (WPS). The contract, first awarded in 1993, makes Verizon a strategic partner to improve mission-critical comms systems for national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) efforts, it said. First responders from federal, state, and local public safety agencies can also access Verizon’s WPS through its Verizon Frontline network for first responders.
Last May, the Department of the Navy (DON) selected Verizon Business to provide wireless devices and services (“voice, data, IoT and mobility management”) as part of a “multiple award contract” worth up to $2.67 billion over 10 years. As such, military personnel and federal civilian agencies will get “best-value solutions”. It followed a $15 million task order with Navy Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) through the federal government’s Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract vehicle.
