Loon, the Alphabet division developing high altitude balloons to extend connectivity to underserved communities, is partnering with AT&T to integrate the telecommunications carrier’s network to its fleet to help respond to disaster relief worldwide.
Under the deal, the Loon system will be integrated with AT&T’s network and to its partners globally, meaning it can provide service to third-party mobile operators around the world. Loon will now be able to work without having to complete time-intensive network integration for each operator it is connected with.
In times of natural disaster or other events, saving time will help Loon get networks up and running faster, allowing emergency services to have access to networks when the infrastructure fails. Because there is no knowing when a disaster will hit, Loon is deploying the system in anticipation of the possibility of a disaster with the AT&T network expanding where it can respond.
Loon said that there are two other elements that are needed for Loon deployment globally — government approvals and ground infrastructure installation to better position itself in disaster scenarios.
Loon has secured approvals to fly over additional countries in the last few months including Kenya, Uganda, Namibia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Malawi and Lesotho. This brings it to a total of more than 50 countries.
