Advanced Television

Galileo

Maxar quiet on future satellite deliveries

Satellite builder Maxar Technologies is naturally reluctant to talk publicly about its satellite delivery dates – or any slippage in those delivery obligations. In future such news must come from its clients, says Maxar. One of the affected businesses is its own WorldView Legion imaging six-craft constellation. Maxar had previously talked in November last year […]

March 2, 2023

ESA wants initial €100m for LEO test system

The European Space Agency (ESA) is looking for its member states to fund an initial €100 million for a mini-constellation of between 6-12 low Earth orbiting (LEO) test satellites to launch during 2026. The cash will be used to build and launch the new constellation. If the tests work out then the bill will be […]

September 28, 2022

Thales wins Galileo contract

Thales Alenia Space has won a $930 million-value contract (€772m) from the European Commission (EC) and issued via the European Space Agency to build six ‘next generation’ Galileo satellites. However, the contract is reportedly funded at 9.6 per cent higher than the main rival bid from Airbus, which is also seeking a contract to build […]

March 4, 2021By Chris Forrester

European Court suspends Galileo contract signings

The European Court has suspended a massive $1.8 billion (€1.47bn) manufacturing contract with Airbus and Thales Alenia for production of Galileo sat-nav satellites. The Court is looking at allegations of trade secret thefts. An objection to the Court from Germany-based satellite builder OHB-System which had pitched with the UK’s Surrey Satellite Technology (SSTL) on construction […]

February 8, 2021By Chris Forrester

UK stays involved in European space strategy

While the Christmas Eve signature on the exit agreement between the UK and the European Union grabbed most of the headlines, the fact is that the Christmas to New Year period saw a number of other announcements made concerning future trade deals and agreements. Cynics might argue that the news had been buried by the […]

January 4, 2021

UK U-turns on OneWeb for sat nav

The UK government is rethinking its commitment to an independent satellite navigation system. The review could mean that UK will not use OneWeb for its independent satellite navigation system. The UK’s access to the European Space Agency’s Galileo system ends on December 31st with the UK’s exit from the European Union. The British government has […]

September 28, 2020By Chris Forrester

OneWeb success not guaranteed

The UK will own about 45 per cent of OneWeb which it will formally buy once the satellite operator emerges from its Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Bharti of India is the other major investor in OneWeb. However, a meeting of the influential UK parliamentary all-party Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) committee has been held […]

September 21, 2020

UK plan for OneWeb rival to Galileo in doubt

OneWeb, now in the process of being acquired by the British government and Indian telco giant Bharti Global, is going ahead with building satellites ahead of any decision to incorporate the UK’s plans for a rival global positioning system to rival Europe’s Galileo. OneWeb’s bankruptcy court permitted the British and Indian joint-venture, (called ‘BidCo 100’) […]

July 20, 2020

Inmarsat: “EAN not impacted by OneWeb/Galileo”

The Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom-developed European Aviation Network (EAN) is open to all aircraft including those registered or operating out of the UK as well as the other 27 European nations plus Norway and Switzerland. A recent report suggested that there might be problems for a rival UK service to Europe’s Galileo satellite positioning system […]

July 7, 2020By Chris Forrester