The competitive consolidation phase is expected to last about four months and will be followed by a further ESA procurement involving a limited number of mission demonstrators. Projects selected for implementation will move through development, deployment and in-orbit validation, with demonstration missions expected to launch towards the end of the decade.
ATLAS is designed to validate an IRIS2-compatible, space-based air traffic management communications and surveillance system. The project builds on technological and operational experience gained by Startical, the company established by Spanish air navigation service provider ENAIRE with Indra to provide space-based communications and surveillance services for air traffic management.
The ATLAS consortium also includes Aerospacelab, Sener Aeroespacial, Stellar Project, DHV Tecnología Espacial Avanzada Malagueña, EOSOL Engineering Consulting, CITD Engineering Technologies and Startical. The partners will contribute capabilities covering satellite platforms, payloads, communications, power systems, structures and the operational definition of space-based air traffic management services.
SELENE will focus on demonstrating a comprehensive space infrastructure based on 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks technology for government services and next-generation direct-to-device communications. The project is intended for government and defence users and targets an area that Indra identifies as having strong growth potential within the space sector.
The SELENE consortium comprises Celeste, Druid Software, Aerospacelab, Thales Alenia Space España, Sener Aeroespacial, Stellar Project, Hisdesat and i2CAT. The participants bring expertise in 5G technologies, satellite platforms, advanced antennas, optical inter-satellite links and system operations.
IRIS2 is Europe’s secure satellite communications programme for commercial and governmental applications in strategically important areas. It is structured as a public-private partnership involving the European Commission, working with ESA, and a consortium formed by HispaSat, Eutelsat and SES.
Total investment in the multi-orbit IRIS² system exceeds €15.6 billion, with first launches expected in 2029 under the agreed timetable. The programme includes a Very Low Earth Orbit layer, known as Low LEO, which will operate below 750 km and is intended to host some of its most innovative missions.
The Low LEO layer is also intended to give European start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises access to the programme’s ecosystem. Indra said ESA’s selection of ATLAS and SELENE strengthens the group’s role in developing European space capabilities and contributing to technological autonomy, security and sovereignty.
Under the programme, ESA acts on behalf of the European Commission as the qualification and validation authority for the governmental infrastructure of the Union Secure Connectivity Programme. It manages development and validation contracts for the initial space and ground segments, verifies end-to-end system, service and security performance against European Commission requirements and coordinates those activities with its own programme.
The Low LEO Pre-Operational and De-Risk Activities are designed to provide a rapid and recurring mechanism for validating potential new governmental services and associated mission concepts in orbit up to a pre-operational level. Their eventual incorporation into the operational IRIS2 baseline will depend on successful maturation and later programme-level decisions.
