AeroTime
• Clement Charpentreau
The French Defence Procurement Agency has awarded Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space a joint-prime contract to develop IRIS, a next-generation military optical observation system designed for ultra-high-resolution imagery. Airbus is lead contractor, with Thales Alenia Space serving as co-contractor on the program.
Space Defense & Militarization
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The French Defence Procurement Agency has awarded Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space a joint-prime contract to develop IRIS, a next-generation military optical observation system designed for ultra-high-resolution imagery. Airbus is lead contractor, with Thales Alenia Space serving as co-contractor on the program.
Firefly sees potential business opportunities as the Pentagon turns toward cislunar space. The development puts a commercial space company’s prospects alongside growing defense interest in the region between Earth and the moon, though the available report summary provides no details on specific opportunities or programs.
A comment describing the US military as “notionally interested” in a lunar satellite constellation signals preliminary interest, not a confirmed program or procurement decision. The available report provides no details on mission, scale, timing or responsible service, leaving the scope of that interest unclear.
MDA Space said the delayed delivery of two Pathfinder satellites, intended to prove out Telesat’s Lightspeed constellation, will have no financial effect on its work as the constellation’s prime contractor. The company declined to specify the cause of the delay and is also positioning for U.S. and European military satellite business.
High activity
The Pentagon conditionally committed a $150 million loan to expand Rocket Lab’s Neutron production and launch capacity, as the company also reported more than $515 million in launch contracts. Separately, the USAF awarded Electra $4.7 million for EL9 acoustic testing, while France contracted Airbus and Thales to develop two IRIS reconnaissance satellites.
Ukraine’s parliament has approved in first reading a bill to establish Space Forces as a new branch of its armed forces, amid concerns about dependence on foreign satellite communications. Recent Starlink and Starshield disruptions during the war have highlighted how access to space-based services can affect military operations.
A report says a new Democratic Congress will likely drop the “Golden Dome” branding, though the initiative’s replacement name and the extent of any policy or program changes are not specified. The development points to potential congressional scrutiny of the initiative’s political framing.
SpaceX is scheduled to launch a Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base’s pad 4E at 4:48 p.m. PST (7:48 p.m. EST, 0048 UTC). The classified U.S. Space Force mission is thought to carry satellites based on SpaceX’s Starshield platform.
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