EU Partners with SpaceX and Ariane 6 for Galileo Satellite Launches
TL;DR
The European Union (EU) is finalizing a contract with SpaceX to launch four Galileo navigation satellites in 2024. The launches, tentatively scheduled for April and July, will use a pair of Falcon 9 rockets. The EU had been considering non-European rockets due to delays in the Ariane 6 and the retirement of the Ariane 5 and Soyuz. The final obstacle to completing the launch contract is negotiating a security agreement to protect sensitive technologies on the Galileo satellites when they are being prepared for launch from the United States.
- EU finalizing contract with SpaceX for Galileo launches SpaceNews
- Europe's space ambitions might at last take it out of NASA's shadow The Economist
- EU fine-tunes plan to launch Galileo satellites on SpaceX Reuters
- So much for strategic autonomy: EU pays Elon Musk €180M to launch its satellites POLITICO Europe
- Italy, France and Germany agree on launches of Ariane 6 and Vega-C The Hindu
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