The Polish Defense Ministry has signed an agreement to acquire two observation satellites from the French company Airbus Defense and Space.
Poland thus wants to boost its military reconnaissance capabilities after Russia's invasion of neighboring Ukraine.
Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak and the French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu signed the contract on 27 December in Warsaw for a value of approximately 575 million euros.
"Polish satellites will be launched into space by 2027"the spokesman said. “Already in 2023, the Polish Armed Forces will have access to the assets of the current constellation of Pléiades Neo satellites”.
The two satellites will be delivered to Warsaw together with a receiving station.
"The satellites will increase the capabilities of the Polish Army in the field of reconnaissance data acquisition based on observation satellites operating as part of the Franco-Polish constellation“, the ministry said in a statement. “Thanks to them, it will be possible for Poland to obtain reconnaissance data in the field of image reconnaissance with an accuracy of up to 30 cm, and operations within the constellation will make it possible to view a significantly larger area of the Earth than is possible for a single country".
This contract is the first export success achieved with support from the French government for the optical satellite S950 Vhr from Airbus, which derives from the development of the Pléiades Neo constellation, already operational in orbit with two satellites since 2021. This latest generation system offers cutting-edge performance in terms of Vhr optical capabilities, accompanied by agility in orbit.
After the launch of the satellite from the European Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, images from Polish satellites will be received directly on Polish territory, thus guaranteeing complete autonomy of the satellite system.
Blaszczak he said other issues he discussed with his French counterpart included areas of defense cooperation that could benefit Ukraine's fight against Russia.
Italian military satellites
Last January, Italy launched its sixth satellite Cosmo-SkyMed, adding it to a constellation that offers space radar surveillance capabilities for both military and civilian use. In addition to its Cosmo-SkyMed constellation, Italy has launched military communications satellites sicral and shares the military communications satellite Athena-Fidus with France.
Industrial ties with France are very strong through the global player Thales Alenia Space.