October 21, 2026

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The European Post

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October 21, 2026

Newsletter

The European Post

Policy • Diplomacy • strategic insight

LATEST
Finnish Mill Workers Await Globalisation Adjustment Fund AidStorm Aid From The EU Solidarity Fund Faces A Plenary VoteEuropean Chief Prosecutor Handover Nears As Kövesi Term EndsAgri-Food Promotion Policy Faces Bigger Budget Push From MEPsErasmus+ 2028-2034 Budget Fight Opens Between MEPs And CommissionMoldova Accession Talks Open 17 Chapters Under The Irish PresidencyIndonesia EU CEPA Signing Hinges On A Language ClauseDigital Fairness Act Targets Dark Patterns In AppsCritical Medicines Act Awaits Final Votes On Drug SupplyMontenegro Accession Treaty Draft Advances After EU SummitHousing Exclusion Recommendation Gives Ministers A Homelessness PlanEU Integrated Resolve 2026 Drills Hybrid Crisis Response For Weeks2 GHz Satellite Spectrum Faces A May 2027 Deadline In BrusselsFirst EU Homelessness Recommendation Backs Housing-Led CareEcofin Deal Limits ESMA Direct Supervision To Giant VenuesNigeria Defence Assistance Gets A First €20m EU PackageAir Passenger Rights Reform Takes Legal Effect On 22 OctoberBaltic Sea Fishing Quotas Head To Ministers With Herring SurgeEU-GCC Summit 2026 Tests Whether Gulf Trade Can Become PartnershipArmenia EU Strategic Agenda Gives Yerevan A Path Without CandidacyFinnish Mill Workers Await Globalisation Adjustment Fund AidStorm Aid From The EU Solidarity Fund Faces A Plenary VoteEuropean Chief Prosecutor Handover Nears As Kövesi Term EndsAgri-Food Promotion Policy Faces Bigger Budget Push From MEPsErasmus+ 2028-2034 Budget Fight Opens Between MEPs And CommissionMoldova Accession Talks Open 17 Chapters Under The Irish PresidencyIndonesia EU CEPA Signing Hinges On A Language ClauseDigital Fairness Act Targets Dark Patterns In AppsCritical Medicines Act Awaits Final Votes On Drug SupplyMontenegro Accession Treaty Draft Advances After EU SummitHousing Exclusion Recommendation Gives Ministers A Homelessness PlanEU Integrated Resolve 2026 Drills Hybrid Crisis Response For Weeks2 GHz Satellite Spectrum Faces A May 2027 Deadline In BrusselsFirst EU Homelessness Recommendation Backs Housing-Led CareEcofin Deal Limits ESMA Direct Supervision To Giant VenuesNigeria Defence Assistance Gets A First €20m EU PackageAir Passenger Rights Reform Takes Legal Effect On 22 OctoberBaltic Sea Fishing Quotas Head To Ministers With Herring SurgeEU-GCC Summit 2026 Tests Whether Gulf Trade Can Become PartnershipArmenia EU Strategic Agenda Gives Yerevan A Path Without Candidacy

IRIS² Satellites Grow To 348 As Brussels Adds €4 Billion To The Plan

Hilmir Bachmann
Policy Watch Editor, Space Policy

Toulouse: The IRIS² satellites programme has grown into a 348-satellite constellation after the European Commission and the SpaceRISE consortium signed an expanded implementation agreement on 7 August 2026. The revised design includes 330 satellites in low Earth orbit and 18 in medium Earth orbit, and it adds 66 satellites for defence, security and emergency services.

The Commission has identified €4 billion in additional funding for the IRIS² satellites. The money combines EU budget resources for 2028 to 2034 with national and third-country investments, and it pays for larger satellites, extra launches and wider capabilities. National commitments include €500 million from Hungary, €656 million from Poland and between €1.6 billion and €2 billion from Spain.

The timeline remains demanding. Plans call for the first launches of the IRIS² satellites in 2029 and the first secure services from 2030, and the launch target should not be confused with full operational capability. Thales Alenia Space is set to supply governmental payloads for the 330 low-orbit satellites, while Airbus holds a contract to build an initial layer of at least 66 satellites. OHB and Aerospacelab also belong to the industrial base, which the Commission has opened to start-ups.

IRIS² is a public-private partnership. The Commission leads it, the European Space Agency oversees the technical design, and SpaceRISE, a consortium of SES, Eutelsat and Hispasat, will operate the system. Until it flies, GOVSATCOM, which pools existing member-state satellite capacity, has operated since January 2026, and reports say talks are under way to extend access to Ukraine.

The programme falls under the Defence Readiness 2030 agenda and aims to give governments, armed forces and emergency responders connectivity that does not depend only on infrastructure from outside the Union. Ukraine’s heavy use of Starlink sharpened that concern. Commission officials caution against treating the IRIS² satellites as a like-for-like replacement for SpaceX services, since the system targets governmental users first.

One of its operators shows both the promise and the risk. Eutelsat reported low-orbit revenue of €297 million for the year to 30 June 2026, up 69.5 percent on a like-for-like basis, while group revenue reached €1.236 billion and the net loss narrowed to €457.3 million. The company expects capital spending of about €1.2 billion in 2026-27 as it renews its OneWeb fleet.

Josef Aschbacher, the director general of the European Space Agency, warned that national networks, including Germany’s planned military constellation, must interoperate instead of becoming isolated silos. Multiple European networks could become powerful if they connect effectively, he said. The IRIS² satellites will test whether Europe can fund, build, launch and integrate a sovereign network on schedule.

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