Fairfax County Upgrades to Next Generation 9-1-1 Platform Featuring Airbus DS Communications' VESTA(R) 9-1-1 Call Handling Solution

TEMECULA, CA--(Marketwired - May 23, 2016) - The Fairfax County Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC), the largest Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) in Virginia, continues its technological advancement to meet public expectation and population growth. DPSC has received national recognition as a 'best in class' agency for its 9-1-1 public safety communications services, training, protocols and technology.

Recently, Fairfax County awarded its Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) contract to General Dynamics Information Technology, headquartered in Fairfax County, to develop, deploy and provide maintenance and support for the solution. One of the vital components in the new system is the VESTA^® 9-1-1 call handling equipment, provided by Airbus DS Communications.

"Fairfax County has long played an important leadership role in the Public Safety industry as they adopt new strategies and technologies that improve their ability to respond to their community. They continue to set a new standard for PSAPs across the country," said Bob Freinberg, CEO of Airbus DS Communications. "Airbus DS Communications is proud to be a part of their NG9-1-1 solution with General Dynamics."

Fairfax County first used VESTA^® equipment in 1992. Since that time, the county's population has grown by nearly 40 percent to more than 1.1 million residents.

"The VESTA 9-1-1 solution not only enhances our call center's previous capabilities, but now provide us the opportunity to be NG 9-1-1 ready," said Steve McMurrer, 9-1-1 System Administrator for Fairfax County. "By taking this next step, we can ensure our community continues to have the most advanced and dependable 9-1-1 services for years to come."

The VESTA 9-1-1 architecture supports the primary and alternate 9-1-1 centers and the three secondary answering points in the County and enables enhanced emergency 9-1-1 information collection, and improved capabilities for cooperative processing and resource sharing. Now, Fairfax County will be better prepared to implement the growing functionalities of NG9-1-1 that keep communities and first responders safer with new forms of communication, from SMS text messages and, later, multimedia messages.

This move to NG9-1-1 means residents of Fairfax County will continue to be served by one of the most advanced 9-1-1 centers in the nation.

For more information, visit Airbus-DSComm.com.

For more information about General Dynamics Information Technology, please visit www.gdit.com.

Airbus Defense and Space

Airbus Defense and Space, a division of Airbus Group, is Europe's number one defense and space enterprise and the second largest space business worldwide. Its activities include space, military aircraft and related systems and services. It employs more than 38,000 people and in 2015 generated revenues of over 13 billion Euros.

Airbus DS Communications, Inc., an Airbus Defense and Space Holdings, Inc. company, is a global leader and trusted source for mission-critical communications technologies. The VESTA^® product suite provides Next Generation 9-1-1 call processing systems, land mobile radio solutions and emergency notification applications, creating smarter ways to keep all our communities safe.