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Inmarsat and Aon partnership defies space insurance trends
Top tier operators not paying increased launch premiums
London
NYSE: AOC

LONDON, 18 September 2008 - As space insurance premiums escalate by at least 15% in response to a series of claims, Aon has worked with Inmarsat to maintain pre-increase pricing for the successful launch of its I-4F3 satellite on board a Proton rocket. According to the Aon Space Market Review Q2 2008, this shows potential in the market for operators with strong risk profiles to avoid market volatility through well-informed strategic buying.

Space insurers earned approximately US$411 million in premium for the first two quarters of 2008, putting the market in a profitable position with claims reported to be US$252 million. However, five additional in-orbit failures mean insurers will perceive market volatility persisting through the end of the year. The failures include partial failures of AMC 16, Nigcomsat, Galaxy 26 and Eutelsat W5. AMC 16, an A2100 type satellite, continues to lose solar array strings with power loss rumored to be now at 25%, sufficient to trigger a claim.

Peter Elson, senior managing director of Aon Space, commented: "The market stiffened its resolve for premium rate increases following losses at the end of 2007 and early 2008. Some operators, such as Inmarsat and other Aon clients, took advantage of favourable market conditions in 2007 to buy long-term policies.  Others that held back are feeling the brunt of the market's reaction. However, quality operators with good technical risks presented to the market effectively can still secure premium rates below long term trends." 

F3 is the third of the I-4 constellation, concluding a decade of development and a US$1.5 billion investment. Commenting on the insurance programme, Nick Palmer, head of risk management at Inmarsat said: "We consider risk management in all its aspects as being one of Inmarsat's core capabilities and the launch insurance programme developed over a number of years in partnership with Aon has been a valuable investment."

The world's shipping, oil exploration, defence and aviation industries rely on Inmarsat satellites to service their communications needs. Inmarsat is also the communications channel of choice for the media when reporting from the world's danger zones and for NGOs, government agencies and the United Nations when coordinating rescue efforts. The Proton Breeze M is one of the few launch vehicles capable of lifting the I-4 satellite, which is the size of a London double-decker bus and weighs six tons.

London based Inmarsat stayed with the Proton rocket for its return to flight after a previous failure led to the total loss of another operator's satellite, AMC 14, and needed to reassure the insurance market that this would be an acceptable risk. Aon was heavily involved in the technical process, assisting with advice and dissemination of information on all aspects of the mission, showcasing Inmarsat’s outstanding engineering capability. This conveyed to the underwriters the operator's confidence in a smooth launch, which helped maintain favourable rates and coverage.

Drawing on experience in both the satellite and insurance sectors, Tim Rush of Aon Space in Washington conducted an engineering campaign, supporting London's role as the lead client office and assisting the team in Paris to resolve market concerns. The Aon team maintained close coordination with Inmarsat's industry leaders throughout including Nick Palmer, head of risk management, and Franco Carnevale, the I-4 programme director. 

Peter added: "The market is differentiating among operators and flight proven spacecraft and launch vehicles. Well-received risk profiles from the top tier operators will continue to attract significant competition for their business. Aon expects further differentiation in pricing not only between risks but also among insurers for any given risk. Only spacecraft and launch vehicles with a significant number of consecutive successful missions will be afforded the best rates in the market."

For more information contact:
Alexandra Lewis
0207 882 0541
Alexandra.lewis@aon.co.uk
http://aon.mediaroom.com

About Aon
Aon Corporation (NYSE: AOC) is the leading global provider of risk management services, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, human capital and management consulting. Through its 36,000 colleagues worldwide, Aon readily delivers distinctive client value via innovative and effective risk management and workforce productivity solutions. Our industry-leading global resources, technical expertise and industry knowledge are delivered locally through more than 500 offices in more than 120 countries. Aon was named the world's best broker by Euromoney magazine's 2008 Insurance Survey. In 2008, Aon ranked highest on the Business Insurance ranking of the world's largest insurance brokers based on commercial retail, wholesale, reinsurance and personal lines brokerage revenues. Aon also was ranked by A.M. Best as the number one insurance broker based on brokerage revenues in 2007 and 2008, and was voted best insurance intermediary, best reinsurance intermediary, and best employee benefits consulting firm in 2007 by the readers of Business Insurance. For more information on Aon, log onto www.aon.com.

About Inmarsat
Inmarsat plc (LSE: ISAT) is the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications.  Since 1979, Inmarsat has been providing reliable voice and high-speed data communications to governments, enterprises and other organisations, with a range of services that can be used on land, at sea or in the air.  The company's services are delivered through a global network of more than 500 distribution partners and service providers operating in 180 countries.  For the year ended 31 December 2007, Inmarsat plc had total revenue of US$ 576.5 million.  More information can be found at www.inmarsat.com.

Investor Enquiries
Simon Ailes +44 20 7728 1518                          
simon_ailes@inmarsat.com

Media Enquiries
Chris McLaughlin +44 20 7728 1015
chris_mclaughlin@inmarsat.com

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