French trio winner
The contract for the sale of two optical reconnaissance satellites to the United Arab Emirates was signed in July 2013, through the go to to Abu Dhabi of French Protection Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Estimated at €800 million, the contract was gained via an alliance between Airbus Defence and House (Astrium on the time), as prime contractor, and Thales Alenia House (previously Alcatel), as payload provider.
The joint bid was most popular to that of the American producer Lockheed Martin.
It additionally included the set up of a floor management station and the coaching of some 20 engineers within the Emirates on behalf of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces (UAEAF).
The launch contract (on Vega or Soyuz, in 2018 and 2019) was signed in March 2015 between Airbus and Arianespace.
Satellite tv for pc technical specs
The 2 Falcon Eye satellites have been assembled on AstroBus platforms.
These had been used for the 2 French Earth commentary satellites Pleiades 1A and 1B, constructed by Astrium for Cnes and launched on Soyuz from French Guiana in December 2011 and December 2012.
Every satellite tv for pc was geared up with Thales Alenia House’s HiRI (Excessive-Decision Imager) imaging system, which presents a floor decision of 70 cm over a swath of 20 km.
Order for a 3rd Falcon Eye?
The primary Falcon Eye, which weighed 1,197 kg at liftoff, was misplaced on July 11, 2019, when the Vega launcher failed in flight throughout Arianespace’s VV15 mission.
On the buyer’s request, the second launch was transferred to a Soyuz STA Fregat M launcher in French Guiana.
It was lastly launched on Arianespace’s VS24 mission, on December 2, the day the United Arab Emirates federation was created in 1971.
The flight ended with a profitable launch into sun-synchronous orbit, with an apogee of 611 km and an inclination of 97.9°.
It’s now ready to see if the United Arab Emirates wt is now ready to see if the United Arab Emirates will order a 3rd satellite tv for pc to interchange the one misplaced final 12 months.
Its mixed insurance coverage coverage (taken out notably with the German reinsurer Munich Re) reached in any case a visibly unprecedented quantity for the launch of an optical satellite tv for pc: in all probability 369 million euros, for the launcher and its passenger.
New navy export contract imminent?
Steps are additionally being taken to promote new twin commentary satellites or safe telecommunications relays overseas.
For the previous, Airbus is presently selling platforms derived from the Pleiades Neo satellites and extra compact satellites, comparable and complementary to those who will equip the Cnes Earth commentary satellite tv for pc constellation CO3D (3D Optical Constellation), which is scheduled for deployment in 2023.
Within the meantime, it’s rumored that the subsequent French order for a spy satellite tv for pc may come from Egypt, after 5 years of negotiations.
Cairo, an ally of the United Arab Emirates, is focusing on the identical theater of operations, Libya, the place its adversaries are Qatar and Turkey.
The Purple Sea can also be an space of widespread curiosity.
Thales Alenia House (this time prime contractor) and Airbus
Defence and House had already supplied Egypt with its first geostationary telecommunications satellite tv for pc, Tiba 1.
The satellite tv for pc was launched on November 27, 2019, utilizing an Ariane 5 through the VA250 mission.
