Composition of Certain Balance Sheet Captions (Detail) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 28, 2012	Mar. 30, 2012
Accounts receivable, net:
Account receivable, Billed	$ 113,160	$ 108,758
Account receivable, Unbilled	119,584	103,929
Allowance for doubtful accounts	(1,138)	(997)
Accounts receivable, net	231,606	211,690
Inventories:
Raw materials	43,440	46,208
Work in process	23,814	23,932
Finished goods	65,636	57,506
Inventories	132,890	127,646
Prepaid expenses and other current assets:
Prepaid expenses	31,881	25,103
Other	2,837	5,814
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	34,718	30,917
Satellites, net:
Capital lease of satellite capacity - Anik F2 (estimated useful life of 10 years)	99,090	99,090
Satellites Gross	658,184	657,957
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(97,663)	(72,226)
Satellites, net	560,521	585,731
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	568,399	504,017
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(242,354)	(209,044)
Property and equipment, net	326,045	294,973
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	163,732	163,585
Less accumulated amortization	(108,673)	(100,544)
Other acquired intangible assets, net	55,059	63,041
Other assets:
Capitalized software costs, net	50,679	41,992
Patents, orbital slots and other licenses, net	11,255	11,194
Deferred income taxes	68,768	53,602
Other	31,882	30,007
Other assets	162,584	136,795
Accrued liabilities:
Collections in excess of revenues and deferred revenues	81,187	88,114
Accrued vacation	17,765	17,573
Warranty reserve, current portion	7,288	6,238
Accrued employee compensation	14,110	21,384
Other	34,056	26,453
Accrued liabilities	154,406	159,762
Other liabilities:
Deferred revenue, long-term portion	16,433	11,414
Deferred rent, long-term portion	9,169	8,237
Warranty reserve, long-term portion	6,114	5,413
Deferred income taxes, long-term portion	2,797	3,073
Unrecognized tax position liabilities	1,306	1,306
Satellite performance incentives obligation, long-term portion	21,241	20,910
Other liabilities	57,060	50,353
Technology [Member]
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	54,358	54,240
Contracts And Customer Relationships [Member]
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	88,790	88,758
Satellite co-location rights [Member]
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	8,600	8,600
Trade Names [Member]
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	5,680	5,680
Other [Member]
Other acquired intangible assets, net:
Other acquired intangible assets, gross	6,304	6,307
Satellite WildBlue-1 [Member]
Satellites, net:
Satellite	195,890	195,890
Satellite - ViaSat-1 [Member]
Satellites, net:
Satellite	363,204	362,977
Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	219,660	195,975
Computer Equipment And Software [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	132,032	127,596
Customer Premise Equipment [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	118,755	85,271
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(40,200)	(33,100)
Furniture and Fixtures [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	14,086	14,093
Leasehold Improvements [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	51,373	51,205
Building [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	8,923	8,923
Land [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	4,384	4,384
Construction in Progress [Member]
Property and equipment, net:
Property and equipment (estimated useful life)	$ 19,186	$ 16,570