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June 18, 1997
CONTACT:
David Frail (David_Frail@SMTP.)
NYNEX Corporation, (212) 395-0500
Flag Ltd. Completes Undersea Portions Of U.K.-To-Japan Cable
Advanced System On Track for Late 1997 Launch
HAMILTON, Bermuda--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 18, 1997--FLAG Limited today announced
that it has completed the installation of the last marine subsegment of the world's
longest undersea fiberoptic cable system, and is on track to be fully operational
by the end of this year.
The 28,000-kilometer (17,000-mile) FLAG (Fiberoptic Link Around the Globe)
system will serve the explosive growth in demand for worldwide voice, Internet and
other data traffic by connecting Japan to the United Kingdom through landing points
in Korea, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, India, the United Arab Emirates,
Egypt, Italy and Spain.
"This final splice is an important milestone in the longest and most
ambitious cable installation project ever undertaken," said Frank Denniston,
NYNEX Global Systems vice president and Chief Engineer in White Plains, New York.
NYNEX Global Systems is responsible for the construction, sales and marketing of
FLAG under contracts between NYNEX and FLAG Ltd. "We are very pleased with the
contributions from our suppliers and landing parties, whose support is paramount
to the overall success of FLAG."
Using the most advanced optical fiber technologies available, FLAG's cable
will provide high-bandwidth transmission capacity to international carriers. It will
dramatically improve communications in the regions it serves, many of which depend
largely on satellite transmissions. Fiber optic transmission offers increased security,
speed, accuracy and reliability of transmission as well as increased bandwidth capability
for advanced applications.
The final marine subsegment links landing stations in Miura, Japan and Keoje
Island, Korea. It measures 220 kilometers (137 miles) in length and rests on the
ocean floor at a depth exceeding 1,200 meters (3,900 feet).
FLAG has now completed the installation of all repeaters, branching units
and terminal equipment in its system as well as all marine segments of the cable.
Testing or commissioning of various cable sections is already underway, and light
and data have been successfully transmitted from Porthcurno in the United Kingdom
all the way to Mumbai, India.
Testing of the Miura-Keoje Island subsegment is scheduled to begin immediately.
NYNEX is the managing sponsor of FLAG.
NYNEX is a global communications and media corporation that provides a full
range of services in the northeastern United States and high-growth markets around
the world. Other sponsors and shareholders of the privately financed project are:
the Dallah Al-Baraka Group of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a large multinational investment
company; Marubeni Corporation, one of Japan's leading general trading companies;
Gulf Associates Inc., a New York-based corporation that focuses on trade and project
development; Telecom Holding Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of TelecomAsia,
the largest market-capitalized company on the stock exchange of Thailand; The Asian
Infrastructure Fund (AIF) of Hong Kong, a $1 billion fund that invests in entities
engaged in developing and operating infrastructure projects in Asia; and GE Capital
Services, a diversified financial services company wholly owned by General Electric
Company and headquartered in Stamford, CT.
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