To the Editor:
I would like to clarify a point contained in your Aug. 3 article about export controls on U.S. communications satellites. Motorola Inc.’s commercial satellite launches from China are not related to earlier launch failures in China. The rocket used by Motorola to launch Iridium System satellites into orbit is the Long March 2C. The launch failures referenced in your article involved other rockets. In fact, the 2C had a proven track record of 14 consecutive successes before first being used to launch Iridium satellites in December 1997. The Chinese accomplished this without any technology or assistance from Motorola, which carried out its three China launches under strict national security controls dictated and overseen by the U.S. Department of Defense.
Norman D. Sandler
Director, Global Strategic Issues
Motorola Inc.
