Satellite based communication, from satellite phone service to G.P.S., has become essential to everyday life, however fifty years ago, it was almost impossible to imagine. That changed on 23 August 1963, when President John F. Kennedy made the first call relayed by satellite between two heads of state. President Kennedy called Nigerian Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa on board the USNS Kingsport (T-AG-164), a converted Victory Class Military Sea Lift Command ship. Beginning in January of 1962 and completed in December, “The Kingsport was converted to a communication terminal by the Navy Bureau of Ships for use by the U.S…. Read the rest of this entry »
