ComStream Positions To Meet Increasing Demand For Satellite Communications In China; New Staffing And Co-located Sales And Service Offices Support Growth.

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 20, 1997--With several Asia-Pacific multimillion-dollar contracts in its pocket, ComStream Corp., a major supplier of satellite-based communications systems, is restructuring its Beijing office to aggressively address the growing VSAT market potential in China.

In addition to several new staff appointments, the company is concentrating its sales and service operations in a single location in Beijing. ComStream Chief Executive Officer Mark Steinman states, "China offers significant marketing opportunities for the company's VSAT TDMA-DAMA products, and having the offices together will promote synergy to tackle the challenge."

New staffing appointments include Yan Liao, who joins ComStream as vice president and managing director of the Beijing office, reporting to the Satellite Global Access (SGA) Division vice president and general manager, Hank Macchio. In this role, Liao will be responsible for the combined SGA sales and operations of the Beijing office.

Liao will also oversee all activities associated with the co-location of the sales and service offices. The SGA sales staff will report directly to Liao.

"Yan possesses unique qualifications for this important job," says Macchio. "Not only is he a Ph.D. engineer and an accomplished manager, he completely understands the China market. And he knows how to build key business relationships in this complex international arena."

Most recently, Liao was general manager of the U.S. operations for Prominent Technology Enterprise Ltd., where he developed the company's new business in aviation and formulated its China marketing strategy.

Reporting to Liao will be Mark Toolan, who was recently promoted to director of Beijing operations. Toolan, who has many years' experience as a senior program manager both for ComStream and Scientific Atlanta, will have responsibility for the Beijing office programs, customer service, applications engineering, and accounting and administrative functions.

Recent ComStream activity in Asia includes a multimillion-dollar, multiphase, 300-node VSAT TDMA network for the Mongolian Telecommunications Corp.; a $6.2 million contract with China National Instruments Import & Export Corp. to supply the Ministry of Railways of China with ComStream's VSATPlus II technology to expand its national communications network; a $3 million contract with the Radio Communications of the Philippines Inc., a BayanTel Company, to provide VSATPlus II network equipment to the Carrier's Carrier, a cellular communications company, and Public Calling Office (PCO), a privately owned public telephone company; and a $9 million contract with Samart Corp. to supply VSATPlus II technology to the Telephone Organization of Thailand.

ComStream is an international provider of digital transmission solutions for voice, data, audio and video applications. It is world-known for its design and manufacture of satellite communications equipment. In addition to full-mesh VSATs, the company also produces satellite modems and earth stations, and broadcast systems for private business and public networks and the MediaCast satellite PC/server receiver card.

With offices in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, Indonesia, China, Russia, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, ComStream is a wholly owned subsidiary of Spar Aerospace Ltd.

Spar, a leading Canadian advanced-technology company, is in the communications, space, aviation and defense, and software industries. Operations are located in North America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim, and nearly 70 percent of revenues are derived outside Canada. It is listed on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges. Stock symbol: SPZ. Web site URL: http://www.spar.ca .

CONTACT: ComStream, San Diego

Gwen Carlson, 619/657-5780

Holly Bertz, 619/657-5327

Fax: [phone]

Web site: www.comstream.com