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To: Jim B who wrote (4891)	3/3/1998 10:48:00 AM
From: Charlie Langford	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 8835

Jim, News just hit on PLFM. Check it out!! Platforms International Opens Space Division, Orders Launch Hardware BusinessWire, Tuesday, March 03, 1998 at 10:40 REDLANDS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 3, 1998--Platforms International Inc. (PLFM), a major developer of unmanned systems, has recently opened a new Space Division, according to Howard Foote, Platforms' president and CEO. He added that "We are already negotiating delivery of the hardware for the Space Division's initial project: development of the SpaceRay commercial satellite launch vehicle." The SpaceRay system is specifically designed to occupy the leadership position in the rapidly expanding world market for commercial space services. It is the only system that satisfies all five criteria - payload capability, availability, reliability, cost, and user friendliness - established by the Commercial Space Transportation Study (CSTS) as most important for the ideal commercial launch service. Projections by both Boeing and the CSTS (a launch market analysis produced jointly by NASA and the aerospace industry) indicate a $20-$25 billion market for commercial space launches over the next ten years. Three major satellite communications networks are already in development, one by Motorola, another by the GlobalStar partnership, and a third by a joint venture of Craig McCaw, Bill Gates, and AT&T. These three projects alone will put up almost a thousand communication satellites. About half of this $20-25 billion annual market will be for launch vehicles to place satellites in orbit. In the race for this business Platforms International's SpaceRay is way ahead of the pack because it uses entirely flight-proven, off-the-shelf hardware, without any need for technology breakthroughs or advances in the state of the art. This technology leadership has been achieved by Platforms International's arrangements with other aerospace engineering firms. The SpaceRay launch vehicle is designed to put satellites in orbit at half the cost of current competition. The vehicle is horizontally launched and recovered. Thus the massive and extremely costly ground infrastructure typical of competing systems is completely avoided. And the SpaceRay is a reusable vehicle; it will return to earth to land much like the Space Shuttle. SpaceRay's streamlined system designed will enable launch-on-demand and pay-on-launch, in contrast to today's typical three-year advance contracts involving a series of progress payments. It will reduce payload turnaround times from months to hours. And it will allow for the broadest range of payload configurations - alone a major advantage in gaining market share. Director of Operations for the Space Division will be Skip Holm, one of the most highly-decorated pilots in the Vietnam War. Holm was formerly an instructor at the USAF Test Pilot School. The Space Division is the company's third major division, taking its place alongside Platform's International's established Airborne Communications Relay (ARC) System and System Software Development divisions. "Safe Harbor" statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Any statements in this document that predict or appear to predict future outcomes represent the company's expectations based on current reality. The company cautions investors that the outcome could differ significantly from such anticipatory statements, depending on the effect of normal risks and uncertainties and a range of variable market factors. CONTACT: Platforms International Inc. by Genesis 550 Corp. Todd Violette, 800/238-7199 www.platforms-intl.com KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMED GOVERNMENT COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS AEROSPACE/DEFENSE TRAVEL/AIRLINES PRODUCT TRANSPORTATION T