Austrian Armed Forces Satellites: Operation Planned to End in 2026
The larger of the two projects will be realized in collaboration with the Netherlands. The plan is to build a total of four satellites, with three intended for operational use and another serving as a test object.
The total costs amount to around ten million euros, with Austria covering six million. The Ministry of Defense describes the advantage of the project as being able to produce significantly sharper images than conventional satellites, thus providing more accurate information for operations.
Austrian Armed Forces Satellites: Altitude Between 200 and 500 Kilometers
The project is called LEO2VLEO (Low Earth Orbit to Very Low Earth Orbit) and will fly between the Low Earth Orbit (around 500 km altitude) and the Very Low Earth Orbit (around 200 km). It consists of two parts: satellite-based navigation and satellite imagery.
Another project called BEACONSAT is purely Austrian-operated and is being implemented by the Austrian Armed Forces in collaboration with civilian companies. The plan is to build a satellite responsible for navigation via satellite signals. According to the Austrian Armed Forces, the special feature lies in its extremely small construction size, making the satellite considered safe and difficult to attack. The costs amount to less than one million euros. The project is currently in the construction phase, with the launch also planned for the end of 2026.
Striving for More Independence
In the long term, the Austrian Armed Forces aim to independently provide the three most important satellite services - communication, navigation, and satellite imagery - to reduce dependence on other countries. The operational lifespan of the planned systems is three to five years. To ensure a permanent satellite connection, there is an effort to regularly launch new satellites into Earth's orbit.
For Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP), it is about Austria having its own infrastructure in space. A modern and comprehensive national defense in the 21st century necessarily requires independent access to space-based infrastructure: "With the construction of our own satellites, Austria will no longer be just a user, but finally also an active designer and provider in orbit."
(APA/Red)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.