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Broadcasts bring Super Bowl to sailors at sea

Along with their comrades deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world, sailors and Marines aboard ships in the Pacific will watch the pinnacle of pigskin live Sunday.

Over the last couple of years, at the Navy’s request, Raytheon has provided the Super Bowl to surface ships in the Pacific, said Alan Goldey, program manager for the Raytheon’s Global Broadcasting Service. The company’s agreement with Armed Forces Radio and Television Service allows them to broadcast over the Pacific waters, Goldey said.

AFRTS broadcasts the big game every year to troops around the world.

AFRTS also uses other systems, such as Direct to Sailor, to broadcast to sailors and Marines, said Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class Shane Tuck, spokesman for Pacific Fleet Command. Not every ship has Direct to Sailor, but those who do are able to watch the Super Bowl, he said.

The Global Broadcasting Service is a military satellite communications system that has provided high-speed, multimedia broadcasts of mission-critical information to military and government decision makers. The GBS Super Bowl broadcast uses Internet protocol service, which became available in 2005, but it won’t require all the security bells and whistles that Global Broadcasting Service uses in the normal course of business, Goldey said.

Navy officials have put the word out to surface ships and submarines about how to receive the Super Bowl broadcast, Goldey said. Submarines can receive it, download it and replay it whenever their missions permit, he said.

“This is a morale booster for troops,” Goldey said.