Satellite service provider Iridium Holdings, of Bethesda, MD, has posted quarterly profits –– its last as a private company –– buoyed by increased subscribers.

Iridium, which in September was acquired by GHL Acquisition, said third-quarter net income dropped 11.2 percent to $15 million, from $16.9 million in the year-ago period. The company said the lower profits reflected acquisition-related expenses. Excluding these expenses, net income would have increased $6.8 million, or 36 percent, the company said.

“Our operating results clearly demonstrate the unique value of our global service offerings and the resilience of our business model,” said Matt Desch, Iridium CEO. “Growth in commercial service revenue reflects strong, recurring demand by our growing subscriber base.”

These results do not reflect the financial results of Iridium Communications, the new name of the publicly traded company following its $400 million acquisition by GHL Acquisition on Sept. 29.

The acquisition positions the company well to finance and implement its Iridium NEXT program, the next-generation satellite constellation poised to begin launching in 2014. The new constellation, which will consist of 66 satellites and spares providing global coverage, will provide increased data rates, higher quality voice and flexible allocation of bandwidth for aviation, maritime and ground-based systems. Iridium said it expects to announce the selection of its prime contractor for Iridium NEXT in the next three to six months.

 “Our full focus now is on growing and serving our subscriber base, growing our revenue stream, and finalizing our plans to develop and launch Iridium NEXT,” Desch said.

Don Thoma, executive vice president of marketing and product management told Aviation Today’s Daily Brief at the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) annual convention in October that the company plans to finance the majority of the new satellite system internally, thanks to the financial backing of GHL Acquisition

And despite the global economy, Iridium subscribers continue to increase. Subscribers were up 16.1 percent to about 359,000 at the close of the third quarter period from about 309,000 at the close of the third quarter 2008.

“2008 was a record year for us,” Thoma said. “Clearly we’ve seen slowdowns in new equipage. But in terms of traffic there’s no slowdown.”