The French Defence Procurement Agency (Direction Générale de l’Armement – DGA) has awarded Thales a contract to provide 30 dual-band (X/Ka) satellite communication (satcom) stations for the French Army, the company announced on 12 July 2024.
The new satcom stations will equip the Serval light multi-role armoured vehicles being developed under the French Army’s Scorpion programme. They will act as on-the-pause (OTP) tactical communication nodes for the high-throughput satcom services required by the information and communication systems deployed by the French Army.
The award, referred to as the Neptune contract, is the latest development in the SYRACUSE IV ground segment programme, for which Thales is prime contractor. It follows an earlier order for the deployment of satcom stations on French Navy surface vessels and submarines and for the development and production of fixed and mobile stations for land and air forces. These include Mercure on-the-move (OTM) stations for the French Army’s Griffon and Serval vehicles and airborne stations for the French Air Force’s wide-body aircraft.
Developed for the DGA, the first version of the SYRACUSE IV ground segment entered service at the end of 2023. It will provide the French forces with a joint communications capability relying on secure, high-data-rate satcom services with robust protection from jamming, interference, cyber attacks and other threats to guarantee end-to-end connectivity and tri-service interoperability.
The two satellites in the SYRACUSE IV defence communications system, SYRACUSE 4A and SYRACUSE 4B, were built for the DGA by the consortium of Thales Alenia Space (a joint company in which Thales holds 67% and Leonardo 33%) and Airbus Defence and Space. As the lead contractor, Thales Alenia Space was responsible for the SYRACUSE 4A satellite, launched in 2021, and the payloads for both SYRACUSE 4A and SYRACUSE 4B. Airbus Defence and Space is in charge of the SYRACUSE 4B satellite launched in 2023 and supplies key components for the two payloads.
