Airbus to Provide SatCom Services for Belgian Armed Forces

Ibadan, 27 January 2023.- Airbus has signed a contract with the Belgian Ministry of Defense to provide tactical satellite communications services for 15 years. As a result, the Armed Forces will utilize channels of the Airbus UHF (Ultra High Frequency) military communications hosted payload on board a commercial telecommunications satellite manufactured by Airbus. As the UHF frequency band is a relatively scarce orbital resource, this offering will make up for the global capacity shortage. Airbus has already signed several firm orders for this capacity, well ahead of the satellite’s scheduled launch.

The UHF payload will receive operations from Airbus’s Network Operations Centre in Toulouse. Furthermore, its 18 UHF channels will enable up to 200 simultaneous communications over Europe, the Middle East, Africa, large parts of Asia, the Atlantic Ocean (to eastern Brazil), and the Indian Ocean (to western Australia).

Armed forces use military UHF satcoms for land, sea, and air operations. They have a high level of interoperability and are, therefore, very useful for multinational and coalition operations. In addition, the UHF band is very flexible and offers lightweight, robust, and highly secure communication. An extensive range of terminals for use on land, at sea, and in the air is available to meet the needs of the various armed forces. Airbus has unique experience in operating UHF milsatcom services. This new payload will enhance its portfolio throughout the lifespan of the satellite.

Eric Even, head of Marketing and Sales, Connected Intelligence, at Airbus Defense and Space, commented, “With this new UHF payload, Airbus will be able to offer a new UHF communications service, scheduled for launch in 2024, to the armed forces, particularly those of European countries and NATO allies.”