In a historic move destined to thrill shipowners who love expensive disasters, Intelsat has introduced FlexMaritime, a bold, multi-orbit communications system based on hope, crossed fingers, and an almost religious faith that something will eventually work.

Mike McNally, Director of Maritime Products and Chief Storyteller at Intelsat, shared his heartfelt realization that maritime operators, who once thought a fax machine counted as high-tech, now demand “better, faster, and cheaper” services. Faced with the impossible, Intelsat did the next best thing: throw Low-Earth Orbit satellites at Geostationary ones and pray the ship stays connected long enough to order more duct tape.